Francisco Gonzalez Cigarroa, M.D., a third-generation physician, was born in Laredo, Texas as one of ten children. He attended Yale University, where he graduated in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in biology. Dr. Cigarroa earned his medical degree in 1983 from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Dr. Cigarroa joined the faculty of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in 1995, where he served as director of pediatric surgery before serving as president of the institution from 2000 – 2009. He established a multidisciplinary pediatric transplant program focused on kidney, liver, and intestinal transplants with outstanding outcomes.

In 2009, Dr. Cigarroa became the first Hispanic to be named chancellor of The University of Texas System. As chancellor, he oversaw one of the largest public systems of higher education in the nation, consisting of nine universities and six health institutions. Dr. Cigarroa's leadership was critical in the establishment of two medical schools and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, and in the advancement of engineering across the University of Texas System.

Dr. Cigarroa is a member of several prestigious societies, including the American College of Surgery, the Institute of Medicine, the American Board of Surgery, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also an honorary member of the National Academy of Science in Mexico. He received appointments to the President's Committee on the National Medal of Science and the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans by presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, respectively. He was elected in 2010 to serve on the Yale Corporation, the university’s governing board. He served on the National Research Council Committee on Research Universities and the American Academy Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences.

In January 2015, Dr. Cigarroa was named the director of Pediatric Transplantation at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, holding several distinguished professorships and titles. Dr. Cigarroa and his wife, Graciela, an attorney, have two daughters.