Harris Corporation Chairman and CEO Howard Lance Awarded Honorary Doctoral Degree by the University of Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. and MELBOURNE, Fla., May 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The University of Florida has conferred an honorary doctoral degree on Howard L. Lance, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Harris Corporation (NYSE: HRS), in recognition of his industry leadership and commitment to higher education.

University of Florida Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Joe Glover, conferred the doctor of science in engineering degree on Saturday, May 1, during the university's Advanced Degree Commencement Ceremony.

"Howard Lance has guided Harris through unprecedented growth and achievement since joining the company in 2003, and has been instrumental in supporting education and research in engineering and science in Florida and nationally," Glover said.

Later in the day, Lance was the keynote speaker at the Order of the Engineer induction ceremony, where engineering graduates accept an "obligation" to take pride in their profession, act with integrity and use their skills to serve humanity.

In his address, Lance emphasized the importance of ethical behavior.  "There are no gray areas when it comes to integrity," he told the graduates and their families.  "You must be prepared to walk away from an opportunity if it means you must compromise your values to attain it."

He also encouraged graduates to seek out challenging assignments, take risks and ask for help in order to achieve success.

In addition to leading Harris to increased revenue and profitability, Lance has expanded the company's presence in adjacent markets through organic growth and acquisitions during the past seven years.  Under his leadership, Harris also has expanded its community outreach by completing challenge grants to benefit local youth, and within the past year alone has committed to more than $13 million in donations to Florida universities.

Before joining Harris, Lance was president of NCR Corporation and chief operating officer of its Retail and Financial Group. Previously, he spent 17 years with Emerson Electric Co., where he held a number senior management positions.  He has a bachelor of science degree in industrial engineering from Bradley University, and a master of science degree in management from the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University.  He received an honorary doctorate of science degree from the University of Central Florida in 2009.

Lance was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve on the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee.  He is a director of Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK) and Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN); former chairman of the Board of Directors of the United Way of Brevard County, Florida; and former chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI.  He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Florida Institute of Technology, and the Board of Governors of the Aerospace Industries Association.

About Harris Corporation

Harris is an international communications and information technology company serving government and commercial markets in more than 150 countries.  Headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, the company has approximately $5 billion of annual revenue and more than 15,000 employees — including nearly 7,000 engineers and scientists.  Harris is dedicated to developing best-in-class assured communications® products, systems, and services.  Additional information about Harris Corporation is available at www.harris.com.

SOURCE Harris Corporation