Matthew Rushton

Interim Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Campus Operations
MPA, Bridgewater State University

Matthew Rushton is currently serving as the Interim Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Campus Operations. In this role, Matt is responsible for Facilities Services, which includes Campus Grounds, Custodial Services, Operations & Maintenance and Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S). In addition, Transportation Services also reports to Matt.

Prior to joining Brandeis, Rushton was assistant chief of police at Bridgewater State University, where he managed communications, patrol operations, and emergency management. He also oversaw BSU’s regional COVID-19 testing and vaccination site. As a crisis negotiator with the Southeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council, he contributed to the development of SEMLEC’s first mobile command unit and served on the mounted patrol unit. In 2013, he founded Blue Strategies Group, a consulting firm that helps college police departments and the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education develop model policies for active shooter and sexual violence response.

Rushton lives in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, where he has served as city council president, and chairs the city’s public safety and fire-station building committees. He holds a bachelor’s in criminal justice and a Master of Public Administration from Bridgewater State University. He is also a graduate of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, a joint program of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Center for Public Leadership.