Robert has nearly 20 years of public service experience, specifically in local government. Throughout his public service career, he has addressed many difficult social problems facing our community’s low-income residents, including the challenges of juvenile delinquency; youth and adult unemployment; and poverty. He has personally been engaged in policy development, program development and program implementation of a number of youth and community intervention programs.

He was previously the Executive Director of the Los Angeles Youth Opportunity Movement for the City of Los Angeles. The Youth Opportunity Movement provides educational, vocational, and career opportunities for over 3500 young people ages 14 – 21 in three of the most economically disadvantage areas of Los Angeles.

He has also worked as the Assistant Executive Director of the City of Los Angeles Commission for Children, Youth and Their Families. In this capacity, he worked tirelessly on a variety of issues impacting the lives of children and families. Robert began his public service

career in the Los Angeles County Probation Department in 1992, and as Probation Director managed the Department’s Community Relations and Communications Office.

Robert is the past Chairperson of the Violence Prevention Coalition of Los Angeles and past Chairperson of Helpline Youth Counseling, a community-based organization. He is a Board Trustee and past president of US Conference of Mayor’s Workforce Development Council. He has received numerous awards and recognition for his work including the Durfee Foundation’s Stanton Fellowship.

He received his BA degree from UC Santa Cruz, and his MPA from Columbia University, and post-graduate work from the University of Southern California.

Robert has three children, Anthony, Paula, and Michael.