Matthew (he/him) joins the SHPO team as the new Assistant Coordinator for the Utah Cultural Site Stewardship (UCSS) program. He comes into this job with extensive experience in public relations, natural and cultural resource management, and a passion for public lands. As the Assistant Coordinator, Matthew will educate and train new stewards to monitor archaeological sites across Utah.
He earned a B.A in History from the University of Montana, which propelled him to join the federal workforce as an Interpretive Park Ranger. For the last decade, Matthew worked seasonally for the National Park Service at Glacier National Park and Mesa Verde National Park, the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon and Utah, and the Bureau of Land Management in Montana.
Matthew earned a M.S. in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism from the University of Utah in May 2022. His thesis “The Effect of Moral and Threat Appeals on Reducing Depreciative Behavior at Rock Art Sites,” is the first research on indirect management approaches on the protection of cultural resources in decades. He hopes that this research will influence land management agencies to develop more effective interventions at rock imagery sites.
Matthew is passionate about Utah’s cultural heritage and is dedicated to the protection of these resources. When Matthew is not in the field training stewards, you can find Matthew, his partner Ryan and their pup Runi, hiking in the mountains (or the desert) exploring the nooks and crannies of Utah’s landscape. He is also an avid baker, loves olives, and refurbishes vintage furniture.
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