Claire E. Watson, PhD

Claire Watson, PhD, is Chair of the Department of Public Health at Gannon University, where she oversees undergraduate programs in public health and health science as well as graduate programs in public health and health informatics. Her career spans academic leadership, clinical practice, entrepreneurship, health promotion, and public health.

Prior to joining Gannon University, Dr. Watson served as a founding program director and interim dean at St. Bonaventure University, where she helped establish the DePerro School of Health Professions. She also served as the university’s faculty athletic representative for its Division I athletic programs. Her work developing safe return-to-play policies during the COVID-19 pandemic earned her the NCAA Division I Faculty Athletic Representative Newcomer of the Year Award in 2022.

Dr. Watson is actively involved with Special Olympics, serving as a Clinical Health Director for Health Promotion and as a founding member of the Special Olympics New York Health Advisory Board. Her work to improve health and healthcare for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities was recognized with the Golisano Health Leadership Award in 2023.

Before entering academia, Dr. Watson worked as a clinical exercise physiologist in outpatient cardiac rehabilitation and as a national coordinator for cardiac rehabilitation for a preventive medicine and telehealth organization. She later founded a company focused on providing health promotion education to organizations in New York.

Dr. Watson earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Geneseo State University and a Master of Science in Exercise Science from Bloomsburg University. She also holds a Master of Science in Public Health and a doctorate in public health from Walden University. Her work reflects a longstanding commitment to health education, wellness, inclusive healthcare, and improving health outcomes through education and community engagement.