Diane grew up in Everett and graduated from Cascade High School.  She completed her BS in Chemistry at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma where her undergraduate research with Ken Rousslang focused on protein structure determination by phosphorescence spectroscopy. Through a research fellowship Diane then attended Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, before journeying to New Zealand on a Rotary Scholarship to study Biochemistry at the University of Otago. Diane received an MS in Chemistry and a certificate in Astrobiology from the UW where she also completed graduate work in the History of Science emphasizing teaching math and science to non-science majors. She collaborated with the Physics Education Group at UW and has implemented inquiry-based teaching methods in her teaching positions at Seattle University and University Prep as well as in her work at UTS.

Diane enjoys soccer, snowboarding, yoga, natural foods, KEXP, crosswords and scrabble, globe trotting, volunteering, and spending time with her horse, dog, and three goats.