Robert McBeath
Broadband Infrastructure Program Manager
Robert J. McBeath is a broadband and digital equity professional dedicated to expanding community access to affordable, high-quality internet, currently serving as the Broadband Infrastructure Program Manager for Cook County. His work oversees advancing broadband access and digital equity across the county, including strategic expansion and innovative use of the Cook County Fiber Network.
Prior to joining Cook County, Robert served as the Assistant Director for Broadband with the Illinois Broadband Lab, a collaboration between the University of Illinois and Illinois Office of Broadband, helping to implement federal and statewide broadband infrastructure investments, including Connect Illinois and BEAD. In this role, he led numerous community broadband programming initiatives, most prominently the Broadband READY program, which paired local teams with universities in all 10 Illinois economic regions to promote broadband access and digital equity projects.
Robert’s broadband career in Illinois began over ten years ago with the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. His work supported dozens of communities through initiatives such as Illinois Connected Communities and Broadband Breakthrough, providing training, curriculum development, and strategic guidance to help local leaders close digital divides. Robert also authored community broadband planning guidebooks funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and produced widely circulated communications and broadband policy analysis reaching audiences across the country.
Earlier in his career, Robert served as an AmeriCorps VISTA with the Open Media Foundation in Denver, strengthening digital capacity for nonprofits focused on poverty alleviation. He has also coordinated civic engagement and government ethics initiatives as a volunteer leader with RepresentUs in Chicago, successfully advancing anti-corruption measures at both city and county levels.
Robert received his Bachelor of Science in Media Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2013. He previously served as an intern at the Federal Communications Commission through the Illinois in Washington program and participated in the Annenberg-Oxford Media Policy Summer Institute at the University of Oxford in 2018.
His professional work is grounded in a commitment to public service, equitable access to technology, and building partnerships that strengthen digital opportunities.