Dr. Bernard A. Harris Jr.
President & Chief Executive Officer, Vesalius Ventures

Defining himself as a “dreamer who believes nothing is impossible,” Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr. is an accomplished NASA astronaut, physician and businessman. Harris is currently chief executive officer and managing partner of Vesalius Ventures, Inc., a venture capital firm that invests in early- to mid-stage healthcare technologies and companies. In addition, he serves as president of The Harris Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit organization he founded in 1998 to develop math/science education and crime prevention programs for America’s youth. NJIT has been the only New Jersey venue for the ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp. Crediting his personal achievements to self-empowerment and self-determination, he uses this foundation to inspire young people that they can do anything if they only set their minds to it.

In 1990, Harris was selected as a NASA astronaut and flew his first mission three years later. A payload commander of STS-63, the first flight of the joint Russian-American space program, Harris accomplished his childhood dream by completing a walk in space, becoming the “First African-American To Walk in Space.” At the time of his retirement from NASA in 1996, he had logged more than 438 hours in space and traveled more than 7.2 million miles. Equally as impressive as his space career, Harris has developed a broad range of business talents. He served as vice president of SPACEHAB, Inc., where he was involved in business development and marketing of the company’s space-based products and services. He also was vice president of Business Development for Space Media, Inc., establishing an international space education program for students.

Harris earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Houston and a doctorate of medicine from Texas Tech University School of Medicine. A trained aerospace flight surgeon, he completed his residency at the Mayo Clinic and fellowship at the NASA Ames Research Center. Other degrees include a master of medical science from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, a master of business administration from the University of Houston Clear Lake and two honorary doctorate of science degrees from Morehouse School of Medicine and Stony Brook University. 

In recognition of his exceptional achievements in medicine and science as a physician and astronaut, in business as the president and chief executive officer of Vesalius Ventures, and as a civic leader as the founder and president of The Harris Foundation, New Jersey Institute of Technology is pleased to confer the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa, upon Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr.