Joseph R. Ecker is an American plant biologist and molecular biologist. He holds the Salk International Council Chair in Genetics and serves as Professor of Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Laboratory and Director of the Genomic Analysis Laboratory at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. He is also an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Ecker's academic career began with a BA degree in biology in 1978 from The College of New Jersey.