Biography
Matt Griffith, M.A., joined the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy in 2025 as a Research Associate. Prior to joining the research team at the school, Matt had more than 15 years of experience in international development. His research interests focus on evidence-based organizational learning in government, philanthropy, and nonprofit settings, both internationally and in the United States.
After 12 years working with leading international development implementers, Matt joined the United States Agency for International Development [USAID] as a monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning [MERL] specialist. In that role he developed strategic frameworks for large, multi-country, multi-agency initiatives, such as the Global Fragility Act, which was implemented in order to address the long-term causes of violence and fragility, promote stability, and reduce the need for costly, reactive military interventions. During his tenure with USAID, he also supported operating units to integrate adaptive management practices into strategic planning and ongoing decision-making.
Matt’s experience working as a practitioner specializing in research and learning was a natural fit for his current role with the school. Matt’s focus on the team’s international initiatives includes a special collaboration with a Mideast partner that explores the future of the international development landscape. He is also deeply engaged in a project funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York to support emerging scholars of philanthropic studies in sub-Saharan Africa.
Matt received a B.A. in English from Washington University in St. Louis, and an M.A. in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. He lives with his family in the Indianapolis area.