Black Woman Named AF Brigadier General
Col. Marcelite J. Harris will become the first black woman to hold the rank of Air Force brigadier general, Pentagon officials announced Wednesday.
Harris, 46, was born in Houston. A 1964 graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta, she also earned a degree in business management at the University of Maryland.
As the Air Force’s first woman aircraft maintenance officer, she rose through the ranks in that specialty until 1975, when she was named personnel staff officer at Air Force Headquarters in Washington. She also served as a White House social aide to President Jimmy Carter.
Her decorations include the Bronze Star and the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters.
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