MATTHEW CHARLES

Matt Charles, DPA, APR

I was happy to join DMR in the official role of managing director in November 2019 after serving in a volunteer capacity for over a decade.

For over two decades, I have provided strategic and crisis communications services for a number of nonprofits, government organizations and small businesses and startups, as well as higher education & online learning consulting (Matt Charles Public Relations+Strategy). I have served as deputy spokesperson for the University of Virginia, director of media relations for the UVA Darden School of Business and director of communications and public relations for Danville (VA) Regional Foundation. My background includes working as an on-camera spokesperson, a television host in Los Angeles and serving as a special investigator in New York City, working sex crimes against children.

I earned my doctorate in public administration with a focus on public policy/communications at Valdosta State University, Master of Public Administration degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia. I graduated from the UVA Sorensen Political Leaders and Duke University Nonprofit Certificate programs and attended Certificates in Leadership and Business Strategy from the UVA Darden School of Business. I hold my Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) certification from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and Leadership in Online Learning certificate from the Online Learning Consortium.

In August 2018, I was appointed to the Fulbright Specialist Communications and Journalism roster — a unique opportunity for U.S. academics and established professionals to engage in two- to six-week, project-based exchanges at host institutions across the globe.