Matthew “Matt” Sauer, ‘87, Collaboration and Impact Officer, Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation

Matt Sauer, ’87, is a change agent. Through his former journalism and new philanthropic work, Sauer has brought critical issues to light, shared people’s stories and supported societal changes.  He thrives on seeing caring communities helping each other persevere.

As a young child, Sauer lived in the New Jersey and Maryland regions. His father, who recently passed away, worked as a soil scientist. In 1975, the family transplanted to the Bradenton, Florida area, where his father started a new job at the now-called Natural Resources Conservation Service federal agency, assisting farmers across the state with preserving topsoil.

“He got a lot of chances to leave but loved Manatee County, and stayed his whole career,” said Sauer, the collaboration and impact officer at Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation in Sarasota, Florida.

Growing up and still today, Sauer loves reading and writing. After graduating high school in 1985, he held a part-time job while studying journalism at Manatee Community College, now known as State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF). SCF provided flexibility for him to work, earn money and receive a high-quality education. He graduated in 1987 with an associate’s degree in journalism from SCF.

“I knew that I was going to have to work my way through school and SCF was a very affordable alternative,” Sauer said. “When I came to SCF, I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I knew it would involve writing and working with people. In journalism, you get to meet people every day, so the beauty is that you are always learning, and in philanthropy, it’s the same thing.” 

At SCF, Sauer enjoyed his mix of politics, history and journalism for mass communications classes and the diversity of students in the classrooms.

“There were working people in my classes who had a lot of life experience, and I could learn from them,” he said.

Sauer engaged with his professors and was enriched by their personal attention and discourse.

“Truly the thing I loved the most was the professors,” Sauer said. “I was extremely blessed with the professors I had. They really shaped who I still am today.”

After graduating from SCF, Sauer continued his education at the University of Florida (UF), where he earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism. He also worked towards a master’s degree in mass communications at UF before pivoting to enter the workplace.

“I went on to complete all the coursework, but unfortunately never wrote the thesis,” Sauer said.
“I had a job offer in my second year of grad school. I wish I would have finished the master’s because there’s a part of me that would love to teach.”

Sauer would advise people today to pursue higher education as an avenue for personal growth.

“Higher education means an opportunity to really explore yourself,” he said. “I truly believe any education is what you make of it. It’s a way to better yourself.”

Like himself, Sauer believes that young college students could particularly benefit from starting at a community college level, such as SCF.

“As a freshman or sophomore, if you are someone that wants added attention and to be able to talk to your professor, a big university might not be the place for you, and SCF definitely is,” Sauer said. “You can get all the core classes you need. Everything that’s taught here is comparable to what you would receive at a university. It’s an incredible deal.” 

Applying his journalism skills, Sauer spent 28 years in the media industry. He was dedicated to driving change through research, reporting and storytelling about various subjects. Sauer contributed to two major projects that won Pulitzer Prize awards and another two projects that were Pulitzer Prize finalists.

“Those projects changed the world and led to new laws, approaches and corrections to injustices in our society, and that was very rewarding,” he said.

Toward the end of his journalism career, Sauer served as the executive editor and general manager of the Sarasota-Herald Tribune and the regional editor for Gannett, overseeing 20 newsrooms around the state. Then, he decided to move to a new line of work.

“I loved journalism, but more and more of my time was on the business side, and it’s an industry facing declining revenues,” Sauer said. “I spent a lot of time trying to find savings and the savings often involved people. I needed to find something to recharge my batteries.”

In 2021, Sauer started his role as the collaboration and impact officer at the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation. He knew Teri A Hansen, the chief executive officer of the foundation, and she invited him to join the team and philanthropy field.

“I like to describe it as a rainmaker,” he said. “I go out and find good organizations that the foundation can invest in. I get to work with them, learn about what they do and see how we can help them the most. It’s a lot like journalism. I meet cool people every day.”

The foundation works together with government entities, community businesses and donors to raise funds to address vital issues and needs, including affordable housing, health equity, recidivism, education and jobs.

Affordable housing is a big challenge locally and a significant concentration of the foundation.  

“We’re losing a lot of good workers who can’t make ends meet in this community and can’t find a place to live,” Sauer said. “If it continues unchecked, it’s going to hurt quality of life for everyone.”

Nursing education is another pressing local issue and major focus of the foundation.

“SCF is broadening its teacher degrees because there’s such a demand for teachers and such a shortage right now,” he said. “I’ve had the privilege of doing some work with SCF in nursing, teacher training, and working with underrepresented kids to get them on the path to college.”

Sauer also supports the foundation’s media and storytelling initiatives. The foundation’s Suncoast Searchlight is a 501(c)(3) organization with a professional newsroom. The Suncoast Searchlight team works individually and together with a news collaborative of several local media to cover stories that typically don’t receive a lot of attention.  

Sauer sees the foundation’s work as a stepping-stone for improving lives and communities.  

“They don’t need a handout, they need a hand up,” Sauer said. “They need a break. They need an opportunity. To see them succeed, flourish and go on to become leaders, there’s no feeling like it.”

Sauer is thankful for many things in his life, including his fulfilling job, wife of 30 years, 19-year-old son studying as a political science student at Santa Fe College, longtime gaming friends, Africa trips, and activists like Stephen Biko and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Working with his team and the community to help uplift one another inspires Sauer each day.

“It’s incredibly rewarding,” he said. “I am most grateful for this great community. This is the most generous community that I’m aware of.”