Rama Chellappa

Prof. Rama Chellappa is a College Park Professor at the University of Maryland, affiliated with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department and the UMIACS Institute. He holds dual appointments in the A.J. Clark School of Engineering and Computer Science. His academic career includes roles as Chair of ECE (2011–2018) and previously at the University of Southern California.

Education: B.E. (Honors) from University of Madras (1975), M.E. from Indian Institute of Science (1977), M.S.E.E. and Ph.D. from Purdue University (1978, 1981). He has held prestigious titles like Minta Martin Professorship and Distinguished Faculty Research Fellow.

Research focuses on computer vision, biometrics (face/gait analysis), secure AI systems, and medical imaging applications. Key interests include 3D modeling from video, hyper-spectral processing, and AI-driven healthcare solutions like aging and tumor evolution modeling.

Awards: NAI Fellow (2020), IEEE Jack S. Kilby Medal (2020), K.S. Fu Prize (2012), multiple IEEE/OSA fellowships, and teaching awards (e.g., Poole and Kent Senior Faculty Teaching Award).

Service contributions include Editor-in-Chief of IEEE TPAMI, leadership roles in IEEE Signal Processing Society, and conference organization. Holds four patents and co-authored influential books on neural networks and image processing.

Labs/Teams: Active in UMD’s Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition groups, collaborating on projects like AI+AgeTech collaboratories and multi-modal biometric systems.