Stacy Patterson

Stacy Patterson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). She holds a B.S. in Computer Science and B.A. in Mathematics from Rutgers University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research focuses on distributed machine learning, edge and cloud computing, and networked systems, with an emphasis on privacy-preserving techniques and formal verification of safety-critical systems.

Dr. Patterson has received prestigious awards including the Viterbi Postdoctoral Fellowship and the IEEE Control Systems Society Axelby Outstanding Paper Award. Her work bridges theoretical foundations and practical applications, addressing challenges in federated learning, consensus algorithms, and distributed systems resilience. She has contributed to advancements in secure aggregation, privacy-preserving vertical federated learning architectures, and robust network design.

Her recent research trends emphasize interdisciplinary solutions for federated learning in dynamic environments, leveraging formal methods to ensure system correctness. Key areas include optimizing communication efficiency, enhancing security in multi-party collaborations, and applying control theory principles to distributed computing systems.

Dr. Patterson’s academic journey includes postdoctoral roles at the University of California, Santa Barbara (2009–2011) and the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology (2011–2013). She actively participates in international workshops and conferences, driving forward research in federated learning and edge computing. Her lab focuses on practical implementations of secure distributed algorithms with real-world applications in finance, aerospace, and autonomous systems.