RIT Professor Named IEEE Fellow

Raghuveer Rao, RIT professor of electrical engineering, joins a select and distinguished group of engineers as he was recently named an IEEE Fellow in November. Recognized for his contributions to electrical engineering, specifically for his work in higher-order, statistics-based signal processing, Rao joins a small, but impressive group as IEEE Fellows.

“I feel honored to be included in this roster of distinguished fellows,” Rao says of his designation by the international organization and his inclusion in the small group at RIT. “It is a great feeling of satisfaction, especially to be recognized by your peers—these are the reactions playing on my mind at this time!”

The IEEE Fellows designation is bestowed on those who have advanced the field of electrical engineering through research and as educators and practitioners.

“This is a very prestigious honor,” says Vincent Amuso, RIT department head, electrical engineering. “Few members are elevated. You really have to make a significant contribution to the field of electrical engineering and Dr. Rao has certainly done this in his career.”

For Rao, his influence has been felt in the classroom where he has taught for 20 years and as faculty advisor to Ph.D. students—in both the Kate Gleason College of Engineering and the Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science.

His expertise is in the areas of digital image and signal processing as well as digital communication. He is a contributor to conferences and symposia, and his research is continually cited by peers in electrical engineering and imaging science.

”I have my hands in several areas of image processing—from theoretical models to image enhancement technology,” says Rao. “Regarding the latter, I have been involved with security imaging for defense agencies. In fact, right now, I am with the U.S. Army research laboratory in Adelphi, Maryland for the year as branch chief for image processing. I am on a one-year leave of absence from RIT. This is something I have done consistently over the years with defense organizations and NASA.”

Rao holds a bachelor's from Mysore University, a master of engineering from the Indian Institute of Science and a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut. He is the author two books, the most recent titled, Wavelet Transforms: Introduction to Theory and Applications.

The IEEE Fellow designation is the highest grade of membership in the organization. The first IEEE Fellow was named in 1912 and it continues to be one of the highest credentials sought by the electrical engineering profession.