John Pelley, PhD is Associate Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Biochemistry at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock, Texas. He is the author of Elsevier’s Integrated Review: Biochemistry, 2nd Edition and a co-author of Rapid Review: Biochemistry, 3rd Edition.

Dr. Pelley received his PhD in zoology from the University of North Carolina and an MBA in management from Texas Tech University.  He completed postgraduate training at the University of Texas Department of Chemistry in Austin, Texas.

Dr. Pelley has devoted his career to studying how medical students learn, both before and after they enter medical school. Among the comprehensive toolkit of resources he’s built to help students learn is the “Success Types Learning Indicator,” an instrument that helps students determine their learning style. Dr. Pelley is also nationally known for his application of concept mapping, a learning technique that focuses on building patterns and relationships in medical education.  He is frequently invited to speak on this topic, as well as other learning strategies subjects (e.g., team-based learning, communications skills) at medical school workshops on teaching effectiveness and academic achievement.

In addition to his teaching role at Texas Tech’s School of Medicine, Dr. Pelley served as its assistant dean for admissions and associate dean for academic affairs, a position he held for 10 years.  He is also founding chair of the TTUHSC SOM Teaching Academy.

A popular teacher who carries a larger-than-average teaching load, Dr. Pelley has been recognized many times over as an outstanding educator during his 38-year career.  He has also been recognized as an Alpha Omega Alpha Visiting Professor at both the University of Nevada School of Medicine and the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy, and is a recipient of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Southern Group on Educational Affairs (SGEA) Medical Education Scholarship Award for the Outstanding Presentation. He was recently awarded the Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award and the TTUHSC Chancellors Council Distinguished Teacher Award.