Matthew R. Sparks, PhD. Is a writer, researcher, oral historian, activist, community organizer and self-described “Appalachian without borders.” Prior to working as a Community Engagement Coordinator, Matthew has worked in areas as diverse as journalism, disaster relief, Middle Eastern NGOs, editing, DEI, and once upon a time, the local Dairy Queen of Hyden, Kentucky. With roots in Perry, Clay, Owsley and Leslie Counties, Matthew was raised in the heart of the Southeastern Kentucky mountains in a rich storytelling tradition that would come to inform his later work in Appalachia and the Middle East. After finishing his B.A. in History and Religion & Philosophy at Catawba College, Matthew entered the world of Middle East Studies at Georgetown University, where he saw the cultural marginalization and violently extractive economic practices faced by Arabs as a bridge linking the Appalachian experience to the region. He also saw rich opportunities for oral history work among the Sinai-Naqab Bedouin population, who also like Appalachians, have a rich history of inhabiting a frontier zone, a strong oral tradition, and curiously, a historical shadow economy based on smuggling. This was the subject of Matthew’s PhD., which he completed at Ben Gurion University of the Negev in 2024. During his time abroad, Matthew remained attached to his community and Appalachian roots, notably spearheading a grassroots relief effort during the catastrophic flooding of 2022, for which he became recognized as a Kentucky Colonel. Having returned home, Matthew is now excited to once again be working in Appalachia serving the populations of his native Southeastern Kentucky.