Talis is a third generation Alaskan born in the Territory of Alaska in 1958. He graduated from Palmer High School in 1976, Pacific Lutheran University in 1979 and Pepperdine University School of Law in 1983. He earned a Ph.D. in Northern Political History and Culture from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2008. Governor Palin appointed him as the twentieth Attorney General for Alaska in 2006. He has also been twice elected to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough Assembly and twice elected as borough mayor. He has been president of both the Alaska State Fair Board and the Palmer Rotary Club. In addition he is Chair of the Alaska State Humanities Forum and a member of the Board of Directors of the Alaska SeaLife Center. He has been a history instructor at the college since 1992. He continues to teach history while serving as director.