Matt Montgomery earned his Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, with a specialization in Agronomy from Western Illinois University in 1994. He earned his Master's Degree in Crop Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2000.

Montgomery serves as the County Extension Director for University of Illinois Extension in the Mason County Unit, and he previously served as the Unit Educator in Crop Systems for the Sangamon-Menard Unit where he served for 10 years concentrating on issues related to Inegrated Pest Management and pesticide stewardship. His tenure with U of I Extension started in 1994 in the Fulton County Extension Unit with responsibilities that included both crop systems and horticulture education.

Montgomery helped draft the state of Illinois' vigilance, scouting and sampling plant for Asian soybean rust (termed the Illinois Soybean Rust Program), serving as an active member of the Illinois Soybean Rust Taskforce. He is the co-author of Look As You Go - A Guide For Scouting Fields and Submitting Samples For Asian Soybean Rust, Scouting For Asian Soybean Rust, Report on Plant Diseases 1002: Characteristics of Fungicides Used in Field Crops, Utilizing Insecticide Mode of Action to Combat Insect Resistance to Insecticides, and Utilizing Fungicide Site of Action to Combat Resistance. He has also authored articles on Crop Scouting, Grape Colaspis, and Insect-Weed Interactions.

Montgomery has been recognized for his contributions to the Illinois PAS Crop Specialist Contest Written Exam by the Illinois Postsecondary Agricultural Student Organization, and has also been recognized for professional development achievement by the University of Illinois Crop Science Extramural Program. Montgomery received the Sustained Excellence in Extension Programming Award (2001) and the Illinois Certified Crop Advisor Award (2002). He was an inaugural member of the Academy of Extension Excellence, and received the American Society of Agronomy's 2007 Monsanto Professional Certification Service Award.

Montgomery graduated from the University of Illinois Master Gardener program in 1995 and became a Certified Crop Advisor in 1996.