Richard L. Pullen, Jr. is Professor and Director of the RN to BSN Program at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. He has longevity of service in three peer-reviewed journals and published over 130 articles and book chapters. He created a model of mentoring communities for students and faculty as recruitment, retention, and professional development strategies to address the nursing shortage and the need for more faculty authors in the community college and university settings.

His clinical impact has advanced nursing science by preparing nurses and other clinicians to manage care and advocate for patients with autoimmune illnesses. He is an expert in autoimmune illnesses. He influences others through role modeling mentorship, service to the public and discipline of nursing, and the importance of disseminating knowledge to guide education, policy decisions, and standards of care to improve global health.