Matt Petersen
Executive Director
Matt Petersen joined NAGDCA as the association’s first full time dedicated staff resource in the summer of 2017. In his role as Executive Director, he works directly with the Executive Board and staff to develop strategies to help the organization achieve its mission and vision. Matt is a nationally recognized expert on public sector retirement who has been quoted in several publications including Wall Street Journal, Pensions & Investments, and Plan Sponsor Magazine, among others, and was named one of 401k Specialist’s 100 most influential people in 2023. He also has spoken at events for many association and industry groups such as GFOA, NASRA, and NCTR. Prior to joining NAGDCA Matt spent 13 years as an active-duty US Air Force pilot and served three deployments in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.
Matt is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. He also has a Master’s in Social Sciences from the Maxwell School of Public Affairs at Syracuse University, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
