The foundational chair of the UC Santa Barbara statistics department is being globally recognized for half a century of pioneering research and his profound impact on the next generation of data scientists.
Distinguished Professor Sreenivasa Rao Jammalamadaka has been awarded the 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Indian Statistical Association.
Conferred only once every two years, the award is the highest professional honor bestowed by the association, recognizing researchers who represent global models of excellence. Jammalamadaka, who served as the foundational chair of the Department of Statistics and Applied Probability at UC Santa Barbara, is being celebrated for his fundamental contributions to directional data analysis, goodness-of-fit testing and linear models over a career spanning more than 250 research publications.
Beyond his prolific research, the award highlights his enduring dedication as an educator. A past recipient of UCSB's Outstanding Graduate Mentorship Award, Jammalamadaka has supervised 50 doctoral students, guiding the next generation of statistical practitioners.
"The basic first step to artificial intelligence starts with statistics," Jammalamadaka noted, reflecting on his tenure. "Seeing my students recognize this foundational power, and watching them bridge the gap between engineering and statistics to become leaders in the field, has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my career."
The award will be formally presented at the 2026 IISA Conference in Varanasi, India, this December.