Assistant Director, Wellness Center Operations
- B.A., University of San Diego, Chemistry
- Psychology Minor
- M.A., University of San Diego, Higher Education Leadership
Matt has worked at USD as a professional staff member since 2018 and currently serves as the Assistant Director of the Palomar Health Student Wellness Center. As a San Diego native, Matt graduated from USD in 2017 with a major in Chemistry and minor in Psychology. He also went on to earn his Master’s in Higher Education Leadership through SOLES. In his role, Matt is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Wellness Center, supporting the Executive Director in establishing and implementing short and long-range organizational goals, objectives, policies, and experiential programs and operational procedures. Matt also collaborates with campus partners to develop and execute student engagement initiatives, events, and special promotions to enhance student satisfaction and retention. Additionally, he is responsible for supporting the Center's budget and financial performance by assisting in revenue generation, labor staffing management and cost control measures. Matt also supervises a team of student staff and custodial staff who are responsible for managing the facility, including programming, customer service, safety, and cleanliness.
Prior to his current role, Matt worked in Campus Recreation, serving as the Recreation Programs Supervisor. In that role, Matt was responsible for the Recreation Class program, Aquatics Program, student staff development, and facility oversight.
In his free time, Matt prioritizes spending time with his friends and family. He loves to play sports, including basketball, softball, soccer and tennis, and enjoys shooting portrait, landscape, and sports photography. Matt is passionate about the ocean and loves to bodysurf and bodyboard in Pacific Beach. Matt is one of five Toreros - his dad played basketball at USD, where he met Matt’s mom. His older brother played baseball at USD, and his younger brother is a double graduate!
Awards
- Thomas F. Burke Student Affairs Administrator of the Year Nominee - 2023
- Thomas F. Burke Student Affairs Administrator of the Year Recipient - 2024
- CHR@USD Employee Recognition Award Recipient, Spring 2022
- USD Administrator of the Year Nominee - 2023, 2024
Scholarly Work
As part of Matt's Master's program, he did his action research on the impacts of on-campus student employment on students' academic success, leadership development, and mental health. He worked with student employees on campus at USD to learn about how their employment affects their overall well-being, with the hopes of developing a system that allows for departments to better support their student employees throughout the academic year. The title of Matt's research project is "Wellbeing @ Work: The Holistic Development of On-Campus Student Employees" and can be found at the link below.
Wellbeing @ Work: The Holistic Development of On-Campus Student Employees