Matthew was born in St. Paul, Minnesota but considers San Antonio home. He moved to Lubbock to pursue a Chemistry degree. During his education, Matthew was actively engaged in research which landed him at the Université Bordeaux 1, Laboratoire de Chimie des Substances Vegetales, Institut du Pin, France working toward a D.E.S.S. in Matériaux du Vivant – Biomatériaux (synthetic organic chemistry).

After his time in France was complete, he was recruited to work with a company out of San Francisco, California. Matthew spent 11 years working with medical/research cyclotrons and nuclear isotopes. As the Director of Operations, he was responsible for the development and operations of five domestic nuclear laboratories and three cyclotron facilities, with one located in the country of Mexico.

Matthew joined the Texas Tech System in spring of 2013 and is currently the Radiation Safety Officer and the Laser Safety Officer of Texas Tech University.