Prajakta Belsare

Prajakta Belsare is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Information Technology at James Madison University's College of Integrated Science & Engineering (CISE). Her research focuses on wearable sensors, behavior modeling, machine learning, and signal processing with applications in health informatics and addiction science. She holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Alabama (2021), an M.E. and B.E. in Electronics and Telecommunications from the University of Pune, India (2013 and 2011).

Her work integrates wearable sensor systems to monitor smoking behaviors, glycemic trends, and environmental exposures. Notable projects include the PACT CAM wearable sensor system and the DeepPuff deep learning model for smoking detection. Belsare has co-founded Abhidheya Labs and Knowledge Solutions (2015-2016) and previously served as an NSF-Computing Innovation Fellow at Dartmouth College (2021-2023).

Her research trends emphasize real-world behavioral tracking through multi-sensor fusion, machine learning-driven health analytics, and translational healthcare technologies. Courses taught include Data Structures and Algorithms, Object-Oriented Programming, and Information Security.

Key technical contributions span bioimpedance-based exposure quantification, EMG-driven activity recognition, and CNN-LSTM networks for puff detection. Her work bridges engineering innovation with clinical applications, addressing gaps in free-living health monitoring and smoking cessation support systems.