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Guyana-born Vice Chancellor (VC) of the University of the West Indies (UWI), Professor Eon Nigel Harris, has been elected Chairman of the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC).

A release from CXC said Harris, who was nominated at a special meeting of the council held in Jamaica on September 22, brings a wealth of experience in education to the body. He succeeds Professor Kenneth Hall. Harris was Dean and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, USA, prior to his return to the Caribbean in 2004.

Harris graduated magna cum laude from Howard University with a degree in Chemistry and proceeded on a fellowship to Yale University, where he received a Master of Philosophy degree in Biochemistry. He earned his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania, in three years, again graduating with honours. Harris then returned to the Caribbean and completed his residency in internal medicine at UWI's Mona campus, where he obtained his post-graduate degree, Doctor of Medicine.

Harris is known internationally for his work as a Rheumatologist. In London, he along with colleagues Dr Graham Hughes and Dr Aziz Gharavi of the Hammersmith Hospital helped to diagnose a disorder called Antiphospholipid Syndrome and devised a diagnostic test (the anticardiolipin test) to identify it. Harris joined the University of Louisville, Kentucky, in 1987 and by 1993 became Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Rheumatology. There he launched the Antiphospholipid Standardisation Laboratory which leads worldwide efforts in the standardisation of the anticardiolipin test and distributes these standards to over 500 laboratories worldwide. The laboratory currently operates from the Morehouse School of Medicine and continues to attract international fellows. Harris has published over 150 papers, editorials, reviews and chapters on the subject. He and his colleagues were awarded the Ceiba-Geigy Prize for their work.

Harris's academic achievements and personal qualities have earned him national leadership positions in organizations including the Association of American Medical Colleges, the National Centre for Research Resources and the Association of Academic Health Centres. He has received many honours and awards, including the Centennial Award for Contributions to Medicine from the National Medical Association of America in 1995.