Matt Morton
Former staff
He / Him
matt [at] mmt.org
I will never forget that the only reason I’m standing here today is because somebody, somewhere stood up for me when it was risky. Stood up when it was hard. Stood up when it wasn’t popular. And because that somebody stood up, a few more stood up. And then a few thousand stood up. And then a few million stoop up. And standing up, with courage and clear purpose, they somehow managed to change the world.
Matt draws inspiration from community-driven, self-determined solutions to persistent social challenges.
Matt has had the privilege to support communities in building vibrant and successful strategies in complex environments. He’s been blessed with a variety of experiences, from collective impact through strategic partner collaboration to technical assistance and training in urban and rural communities, from elected office to developing innovative programs and initiatives to address barriers to community prosperity.
Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Matt is deeply committed to improving educational opportunities in Oregon. He enjoys building authentic cross-system partnerships, designing both policy and practice that shift the educational landscape to better reflect the emerging needs and changing demographics of our state. Perhaps most importantly, Matt comes with a clear and sustained commitment to equity, which he regards as our state's greatest opportunity to reduce the achievement gap.
Prior to Meyer, Matt served as the executive director of the Native American Youth and Family Center, a community-based organization in Portland dedicated to enriching the lives of youths and families across Oregon through education, community involvement and culturally specific programming. With a life-long commitment to improving educational opportunities for students, Matt has been actively involved in the Portland community since completing his Master of Education degree at Oregon State University in 1998. He lives in North Portland’s Humboldt neighborhood with his wife, Courtaney, and son, Marcus.
Matt was recognized as an Extraordinary Board Member (35 and under) with a 2009 Light A Fire Award, and in 2014, he received the Forty Under 40 Award from the Portland Business Journal. He has an extensive record of education leadership and community participation, including a four-year elected term as a Portland Public Schools board member, board member of All Hands Raised, member of Partners in Diversity's Advisory Board, co-chair of the Coalition of Communities of Color’s Education Justice Committee and Eliminating Disparities in Child & Youth Success Collaborative, and board member and chair of NAYA Family Center.
Matt joined the Meyer team in 2016.