Diane E. Chico is an Instructional Professor and Department Head in the Department of Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics at Texas A&M University Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine. She holds a PhD from the University of Texas Medical Branch and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine of Yeshiva University. Dr. Chico’s primary research interests lie in medical education, particularly in teaching anatomy, histology, and neuroscience within the first-year curriculum. Her current scholarly pursuits involve designing, implementing, and evaluating instructional models that emphasize the application and synthesis of knowledge, as well as fostering self-directed student learning. Her research also focuses on measuring student learning and knowledge retention in basic sciences to enhance instructional modalities. In the past, her work included structure-function studies of peptide-delivery vehicles and investigations into the mechanisms of posttranslational modifications on protein function. She has received numerous awards for her teaching excellence, including the Provost Academic Professional Track Faculty Teaching Excellence Award and the Association of Students University-Level Distinguished Achievement Award at Texas A&M University.