Born in Temple, Texas, Dr. Bernard Harris Jr. is a former NASA astronaut who, on February 9, 1995, became the first African American astronaut to walk in space. Harris logged more than 438 hours and traveled over 7.2 million miles on two space shuttle missions.

Harris’s commitment to education earned him a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Houston, a Master of Medical Science from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and a Doctor of Medicine from Texas Tech University. He completed a residency in internal medicine at the Mayo Clinic and trained as a flight surgeon at the United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine.

Throughout his career, he remained focused on philanthropy, education and inspiring young people. He founded the Harris Institute & Foundation and was a founding member and CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative organization.

“We are infinite beings with infinite possibilities. We have the power within ourselves to do anything we set our minds to do.” – Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr.