Matt Nelson brings three decades of classroom teaching and administrative support experience to the Holdsworth Center.
Most recently, he served as an executive assistant in the Office of the President at The University of Texas at Austin, his alma mater. Previous to that, Matt taught at Bryker Woods Elementary in Austin ISD for 20 years.
Matt’s journey as an educator began after college, when he joined the Peace Corps in Papua New Guinea and taught ninth grade English, math, and social studies at St. Joseph’s High School on Bougainville Island. Shortly after returning to the United States, Matt worked as a recruiter for the Peace Corps and then as a public affairs specialist in New York City.
Still passionate about teaching, Matt enrolled in the Peace Corps Fellows Teaching Program at Towson University, where he earned a master’s degree in the art of teaching while teaching elementary students at Baltimore City Public Schools.
A proud graduate of Austin ISD, Matt earned his bachelor’s degree in government and a teaching certification from The University of Texas at Austin. He is also an alumnus of the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program, the Goethe Institut Transatlantic Outreach Program, and the Korean Foundation’s Korean Studies Workshop for American Educators.
Matt is married with two grown children. In their free time, the couple love to travel and enjoy going to restaurants and craft breweries around the Austin area. Matt also loves solving the daily New York Times crossword puzzle, playing softball and watching Premier League soccer.