Born Marcelite Jordan to Cecil O'Neal Jordan and Marcelite Terrill Jordan, Sr, in Houston, Texas, she graduated from Spelman College, earning her B.A. in speech and drama in 1964.
She was commissioned through Officer Training School, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in 1965 and held a variety of assignments in the Air Force.
Harris’s career included many "firsts", including being the first female aircraft maintenance officer, one of the first two female air officers commanding at the United States Air Force Academy, and the Air Force’s first female Director of Maintenance.
She served as a White House social aide during the Carter administration.
Her service medals and decorations include the Bronze Star, the Presidential Unit Citation, and the Vietnam Service Medal.
Harris retired as a major general in 1997, the highest ranking female officer in the Air Force and the Nation’s highest ranking African-American woman in the Department of Defense.
Upon retirement from the Air Force, she served NASA as the Florida Site Director and Logistics Process Owner for United Space Alliance, the company managing the nation’s shuttle program.
Besides her Spelman B.A., she holds a B.S. in Business Management from the University of Maryland University College.
In 1999, Harris was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Spelman College. She was a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority. Died September 7, 2018.
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