A Little Background...

I was born in the city of Guadalajara, but I am a Zacatecana since our family was from and lived in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico. My family lived there for the first nine year of my life, where my parents taught me invaluable values: Family is Your Strength and Support, Be Respectful to Everyone, Give Your Best - Always, and Help Others. These are my values and what guide me in life. ​​In 2001, my family emigrated to the United States, specifically Lafayette, IN, when I was nine years old. We came, as many others, to achieve a better life. Those first years were tough, as we had to learn a new language and a new culture. However, we overcame them and moved on to the next challenges: "fitting in," being a Latina (i.e. female and POC), and getting to college. Thanks to my parents support and love, as well as the values they instilled on me, I overcame and achieved my goals.

Professional & Educational Experience

​One belief that my father has passed on to me is that "ignorance is the worst thing to have", especially when it can be so easily remedied. So, getting an education and continuous learning has always been a top priority for me. This led me to apply to Purdue University to attain a Bachelor's Degree in the Professional Flight Program, followed by a Masters Degree in Aviation Human Factors, and now pursuing a PhD in Learning Design & Technology. 

The degrees that I have attained have assisted me in having a successful career in aviation, specifically in the aviation training environment. I started as a flight instructor in 2015, while still attaining my Bachelor's degree, and thoroughly enjoyed it that I decided to pursue it as a career. To increase my knowledge and become a better instructor, I continued to pursue educational degrees as I moved up in my career. Now, I am an the Chief Flight Instructor at Purdue's Professional Flight Program.

​In this position, I have been able to work with various instructors and students to overcomes challenges, adjust operational policies and procedures, and lead the program to being more efficient and safe. Helping others achieve their goals and succeed in them, is the reason I love my job! 

Research Interests

While working to attain my PhD, I have pursued various interests. These interests stem from my beliefs on learning and instruction. I believe that anyone can learn, it just requires an appropriate approach. Every person is different - beliefs, backgrounds, mentality, etc. - so, different approaches must be used for learning. Further, the approach that one person learned from will be the approach they will most likely use to teach others - which could create conflict between learner and instructor. Learning more about these concepts and how they can be accounted for when providing instruction is one of my educational goals. ​

My current interests for research are:

1.  Competency-Based Education and Mastery Learning

2.  Human Performance Improvement

3.  Attitudinal Learning Theory 

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