Matt joined the United Way team on October 1st, 2019. He previously served as the Executive Director of Hands Up! Preschool, a long-time United Way partner agency. Before that, he spent eight years in Higher Education at his alma mater, Union University, where he did his undergraduate work in Christian Ethics and then earned a Master in Education.
He’s the Co-founder and Past-Chair of the Jackson-Madison County Equity Project; Past-Chair of the United Ways of Tennessee State Association; Past-Chair of the Anti-Poverty Task Force for the City of Jackson; Board Member for the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth, Board Chair of the Sycamore Institute; Board member for the WestStar Leadership Program; Board Vice-Chair for AIMHiTN; Board member for TBI’s Handle With Care/Drug-Endangered Children Task Force; Council member for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ Community Development Advisory Council; member of the United Way Black Professional Leadership Alliance and National Presidents Roundtable, and member of the Madison County Children’s Cabinet. He also serves on the Pastoral Team at the Historic First Baptist Church.
Matt is the recipient of the David Hallock Award for Outstanding Non-profit Leadership, The William H. Graves Humanitarian Award, the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth Jim Pryor Award, the WestStar Emerging Leader Award, the Leadership Jackson Jewel Award, the Jackson Madison County Branch NAACP Race Relations Award, the Broadman & Holman Ministerial Award, and the 2022 United Way Exemplary Leader Award for the Southeast Region.
He is a 7th-generation West Tennessean, and when not serving in the community, he enjoys spending time with his wife, children, and extended family.