Renae Chesnut served as Dean and Professor of Pharmacy Practice at the Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences from 2016 until 2024. Prior to serving as Dean, Renae held the roles of Associate Dean for Academic & Student Affairs and Assistant Dean for Student Affairs. Before joining Drake in 1993, she was a sales and marketing representative for Eli Lilly & Co.

As Dean, Renae has been instrumental in the development, implementation, and accreditation of the college's Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program as well as master's degrees in Athletic Training (MAT), Healthcare Informatics and Analytics (MSHIA), and Clinical Psychopharmacology (MSCP). In addition, she has worked with campus and community partners to develop several joint degree programs for pharmacy and health sciences students. She was elected to the Drake University Faculty Senate for three terms, and was the Faculty Athletic Representative to the NCAA and Missouri Valley Conference between 2000-2016. She is active with the Des Moines Area Interprofessional Collaborative, serving as the Chair during 2015-16 and 2020-2021.

Through her leadership and administration of the Drake University CPHS's DELTA Rx Institute, she has helped to further the Institute's mission to instill a "spirit of change and innovation in the pharmacy profession." The DELTA Rx Institute promotes entrepreneurial leadership in pharmacy, creating leaders who work to advance the profession of pharmacy by identifying and pursuing new opportunities to create value for patients and society.

Renae has served on several committees and leadership roles in the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), most recently being elected to the AACP Board of Directors and serving as the Chair of the Council of Deans during 2021-2022. She also serves on the Board of Directors for SafeNetRx and the Central Iowa LifeServe Blood Center. She is a past president of the Iowa Pharmacy Association and the Central Iowa Pharmacists Association.

Renae holds a BS in pharmacy, a MBA, and an educational specialist (EdS) and doctorate (EdD), all from Drake University.