Dr. Rebecca Richards-Kortum stands as a preeminent leader in global health innovation and biomedical engineering, currently holding the distinguished position of Malcolm Gillis University Professor at Rice University where she serves joint appointments in Bioengineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering. Born in Grand Island, Nebraska, she developed an early passion for mathematics and science that led her to pursue undergraduate studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she graduated with highest distinction in both physics and mathematics. Her academic journey continued at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she earned a master's degree in physics in 1987 followed by a doctorate in medical physics in 1990. Prior to joining Rice University in 2005, she established her research credentials at the University of Texas at Austin, building a foundation that would later propel her to the forefront of bioengineering for resource-limited settings.
Dr. Richards-Kortum has pioneered the development of low-cost, high-performance medical technologies specifically designed for remote and low-resource communities, with her laboratory focusing for two decades on translating research that integrates nanotechnology and molecular imaging with microfabrication technologies. Her work has resulted in innovative optical imaging systems that are portable, inexpensive, and capable of rapid point-of-care diagnosis, including mobile imaging methods that can diagnose and treat cervical precancer in a single visit for communities where this condition represents a major cause of mortality. Her research has led to the development of over thirty patents addressing critical health challenges such as cervical and oral cancer, premature birth, sickle cell disease, and malaria, with technologies successfully implemented across multiple developing countries including Malawi, China, Botswana, El Salvador, and Brazil. Her seminal textbook Biomedical Engineering for Global Health published in 2010 has educated a generation of engineers on the principles of developing health technologies for underserved populations.
As Director of the Rice 360° Institute for Global Health and Founder of Beyond Traditional Borders, Dr. Richards-Kortum has cultivated extensive international collaborations with institutions including the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the University of Malawi College of Medicine, and Barretos Cancer Hospital in Brazil, demonstrating her commitment to systems-based engineering approaches that address maternal and newborn health challenges. Guided by the belief that all people deserve access to health innovation, she has received the highest honors in her field including the MacArthur Fellowship and the Pierre Galletti Award from the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. Her Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professorship since 2002 has further enabled her to transform bioengineering education through the development of innovative curricula that prepare students to design sustainable health solutions. Dr. Richards-Kortum continues to shape the future of global health technology through multidisciplinary collaborations that bridge engineering, medicine, and public health to address preventable conditions affecting vulnerable populations worldwide.
