Robert P. Watson, Ph.D. is the director of TAL. A professor, author, media commentator, and community activist, Robert has published over 30 books and several hundred scholarly articles, book chapters, reference essays, and newspaper columns on topics in American politics and history. Several of his books have been nominated for awards and/or are in international translation. He is also the director and editor of two multi-volume encyclopedias - American Presidents and American First Ladies (Salem Press) - the quadrennial Report to the First Lady, which is presented to the White House, and two book series - the "Presidential Wives Series" (Nova) and "Truman Legacy Series" (Truman State University Press).

A political commentator, Robert has given thousands of media interviews to local, national, and international outlets, including CNN, NBC, MSNBC, Fox News, USA Today, The New York Times, the BBC, Time, and so on, and has appeared on the Voice of America, Hardball with Chris Matthews, The Daily Show with John Stewart, and C-SPAN's Book TV program. He is an analyst for several south Florida television and radio stations and frequently contributes OpEd pieces to newspapers in south Florida and around the country.

Robert has served on the boards of several educational associations, scholarly journals, and presidential foundations such as the Harry Truman Foundation, Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation, and George McGovern Center; was the founding editor of the journal White House Studies; has lectured as a visiting fellow at universities, libraries, and historic presidential sites throughout the United States; and co-convened several national conferences on the American presidency and various political issues, including the annual Truman Legacy Symposium.

An avid volunteer and community leader, Robert has delivered well over 1,000 speeches, townhalls, and civics programs to community groups and schools. For his work, Dr. Watson has received many awards, including the "Heavy Hitter in Education" by the South Florida Business Journal, the "Children's Hero Award" from the Children's Advocacy Council, the "International Abraham Lincoln Award," both the "Distinguished Professor of the Year" and "Faculty Service Award" while serving on the faculty at Florida Atlantic University, and Lynn University's "Professor of the Year," among other teaching awards.

Robert has served on the faculties of several universities around the country and with the Junior Statesman Foundation at Yale, Stanford, and Georgetown. In 2007, he joined Lynn University where he established and now directs a new American Studies Program. Robert and his wife, Claudia, have two children and reside in Boca Raton, Florida.