Hi, I’m Brian Chico
An instructional designer blending learning design, AI tools, and visual storytelling into seamless experiences.
Blue & Gold Design
The Blue & Gold design was created in partnership with faculty at Florida International University and has since been adapted across multiple courses to support a more consistent and intuitive learner experience. I am currently collaborating with CidiLabs to evolve this work into a reusable theme that enables quick adoption for maintenance courses, reduces faculty overhead, and supports alignment with Quality Matters standards across multi-section programs.
Evergreen Modern Design
Evergreen Modern was designed for Florida International University’s Military Law Program as a flexible visual design that balances program-level consistency with course-level identity. By using a shared structural framework paired with distinct color treatments, the design helps learners quickly orient themselves across courses while allowing faculty to maintain instructional autonomy. This approach supports clear navigation, reduces cognitive load, and aligns with Quality Matters expectations for consistency and usability.
Ellie’s Story
The Ellie Story was developed for a course on children’s literature as an implementation of narrative-based constructivism, designed to place students inside a virtual children’s book. The entire course was built within PowerPoint, with course content embedded directly into the narrative to create an immersive, story-driven learning environment. This approach supported active meaning-making, increased student engagement, and aligned the learning experience with the storytelling structures students were analyzing throughout the course.
Recent Presentations
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AI That Works | Canvas Connect
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Perusall: Designing Meaningful Assignments | L3
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App Smash Bros | Instructor Con
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Battle of the Discussions | FIU Online Con
My GPT Creations
The Mirror GPT
Co-developed with members of the LDI team, the Mirror GPT supports reflective learning through guided conversations. It prompts students to examine their beliefs and assumptions and connect personal experiences to course topics.
Instructor Guide GPT
This GPT was created in response to a recurring issue: instructor guide documents were not being used, leaving faculty underprepared at the start of the semester. Working with FIU faculty and the Learning Design Innovation (LDI) team, we redesigned the instructor guide experience into a user-friendly GPT that allows instructors to quickly find clear, course-specific answers about content, assignments, and expectations as they teach.
The Guru Card Guru
This GPT was created to expedite the drafting of new FIU Online Guru Cards while maintaining consistent formatting and tone. It supports the team as we develop new guru cards by standardizing structure, language, and alignment to official templates.
Faculty Showcase Course
I lead the continued development of the Faculty Showcase Course, a centralized space for faculty and instructional designers to explore AI assignments, a shared GPT library, instructional tools, and visual design examples. To expand awareness beyond the course itself, I also designed an in-person advertisement hosted in the Graham Center, extending the reach of the showcase to faculty through a physical campus presence.