-Stanley C. Moore Professor of Bioengineering, Rice University, and
-Chair, Department of Bioengineering, Rice University (effective Fall 2005)
-Cockrell Family Chair in Engineering, and
-Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Texas, Austin (current)

Research:
Dr. Richards-Kortum's research centers on new non-invasive cancer detection technologies that use high resolution, optical imaging; the use of fluorescent imaging agents for cancer detection; biophysical studies of the light-scattering properties of cells and tissues; and the use of fiber-optic sensors for in vivo detection of cancer.

Career Highlights:
Dr. Richards-Kortum received a BS in physics and mathematics, with highest distinction, from the University of Nebraska in 1985, and her PhD in medical physics from the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology in 1990. She was a founding faculty member of UT Austin's Department of Biomedical Engineering in 2001.

Recently, Dr. Richards-Kortum received a five-year $8 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to develop miniature, disposable microscopes that doctors can use to rapidly diagnose tumor genotypes for lung, oral, and cervical cancers without conducting a biopsy.

She has won numerous awards both for her teaching and research, including the NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award (1991). She was named a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor (2002), and a Paper Professor in 2002, reflecting excellence in undergraduate teaching.