Matt D’Arrigo

Matt D’Arrigo has dedicated the past 25 years of his life to being a champion and advocate for the arts and young people. He is the Director of Creative Youth Development at the Clare Rose Foundation overseeing local, regional, and national strategy, investments, advocacy, and field building activities.  He is Co-Founder of The Clare Rose Center for Creative Youth Development (CYD), a backbone organization and philanthropic intermediary established to ensure that CYD funders, practitioners, organizations, and young people have access to the resources, tools, opportunities, and relationships they need to thrive.  

Prior to joining Clare Rose Foundation, D’Arrigo was the Founder and CEO of A Reason To Survive (ARTS), a nationally recognized CYD organization based in National City, CA. His work with ARTS was the subject of the 2013 Academy Award winning documentary short “Inocente”, featured on the Today Show, was a case study in the New York Times best-selling book “Decisive” by Chip and Dan Heath, and profiled in Darius Graham’s book “Being the Difference: True Stories of Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things to Change the World”. His work in philanthropy with Clare Rose has been featured in the New York Times.

He serves as Board Chair for the National Guild for Community Arts Education, Vice-Chair of SD Art Matters, co-chair of the Arts Ed Impact Group for Grant Makers for Education and sits on the Board of Catalyst of San Diego and Imperial Counties, where he co-founded the Arts & Intersections Working Group. D’Arrigo is also co-founder of the National CYD Funders Forum and Arts Amplifying Youth (AAY!). He is a coach and facilitator with the Fieldstone Leadership Network in San Diego. 

 He lives in Point Loma, San Diego with his wife Hulya, kids Tessa and Andrew, and their dog Max.