Robert Gardner is a professor emeritus and chair of the School of Radio and Television Arts (RTA) at Ryerson University. Gardner was born in Simcoe, Ontario. He graduated from Ryerson with a diploma in Radio and Television Arts in 1959. In 1963, he earned his Bachelor of Arts from McMaster University, followed by a Master of Arts, also from McMaster, in 1968. In 1983, he received his PhD in Education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. Gardner began working as a part-time instructor in RTA in 1969. He joined the faculty in 1972 and became its Vice-Chair in 1973. In 1979, Gardner became Chairman of the Ryerson committee on Applied Research. In 1976, he was Acting Chair of RTA and, from 1977 to 1980, was its appointed Chair. From 1980 to 1981, Gardner acted as Dean of Applied Arts until he took temporary leave of Ryerson to pursue his doctoral research. He was appointed Chair again from 1995 to 1999 and from 2000 to 2004, at which time he retired to Emeritus status. Throughout his career at Ryerson, Gardner also acted as a media consultant to industry, government, and educational institutions, and provided award-winning content for film and television and for the advertising industry, including commissions for the CBC, the National Ballet, TVOntario, London Life Insurance Company, and others.