Areas of Expertise: Workforce policy development and implementation, Aging and long-term care, Future of work
Robert Espinoza serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the National Skills Coalition, which envisions a future where every person in America is guaranteed skills training, good jobs, and economic prosperity.
National Skills Coalition mobilizes broad networks—including working people, businesses, training providers, and workforce leaders—to champion policies that expand access to skills training, create clear pathways to quality jobs, and support essential services like childcare and transportation, ensuring today’s students and workers can thrive in an evolving economy.
Robert is a prominent advocate and thought leader in the workforce, aging, and caregiving fields, who has dedicated more than 25 years to advancing public policy and fostering a greater general understanding of some of our most pressing societal issues. He has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, CNN, Forbes, and The Washington Post, among others. In 2020, Robert was selected for the inaugural CARE100 list in 2020, recognizing him as one of the most forward-thinking individuals reshaping the caregiving landscape in America. Additionally, he was named one of Next Avenue’s 2020 Influencers in Aging.
Before his role at National Skills Coalition, Robert was the Executive Vice President of Policy at PHI, the nation’s foremost organization focused on the direct care workforce, where he directed its renowned national advocacy, research, and public education division for nearly a decade. In 2021, he testified before the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor, emphasizing the urgent need to strengthen workforce interventions in direct care.
In addition, Robert served as a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and currently sits on the board of directors for the National Academy of Social Insurance, the FrameWorks Institute, and the American Society on Aging, where he serves as Board Chair. Since 2023, he has hosted A Question of Care, an award-winning podcast exploring the many challenges facing our country’s caregiving system.
Robert received his MPA from New York University and his BA in English and BS in Journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he graduated summa cum laude. He is a 2014 Rockwood Leadership Institute graduate, living in Jersey City, New Jersey, with his husband, Michael, and their dog, Gracie.
