In what Student Government president Taylor Cox called a mix between a mother, a watchdog and an adviser role, Arlette Henderson is SG’s new financial coordinator.
“A lot of people that join SG may not know everything, but I want to give them a clear understanding of what they can do with their funds, or some good ideas when they come to ask me what I think of this first,” Henderson said.
Henderson said she wants to give students different options to consider when they need to apply for funds, but Henderson’s experience at the University exceeds more than financial capabilities.
Henderson was the administrative assistant to Clovier Torry, director of Graduate Recruitment, Retention and Diversity, during her own time as an undergraduate at the University. She aided Torry in managing student workers and those who came in to conduct business in an organized, perceptive manner that deemed her trustworthy, Torry said.
“What especially was so impressive to me working with her was she was working as a full-time staff member, she was taking classes working on her bachelor’s degree, she was a mother of three and married — doing all of these things while maintaining a very good GPA. And then, once she finished her bachelor’s, then she got her master’s,” Torry said.
Henderson, who received her master’s degree in human resources, said she wants to stress the importance and attainability of a good education to her children. She said her studies at the University as a way to build upon her career path. Henderson said her education helps her manage the diverse membership of students in SG.
“I don’t sugarcoat things, I just tell them how it is, and so I think they respect that more,” Henderson said.
Torry said those qualities would be useful for someone who has to manage many accounts and knew Henderson would be the right fit as SG’s new financial coordinator. Although Henderson was not mainly involved in budgeting in the graduate administration, Torry said Henderson was active in the budgeting process when she worked at the Honors College.
“If we need Arlette, we can go into her office and talk to her, and she helps guide us. So that’s very beneficial to us,” Cox said.
Henderson assisted Nancy Clark, dean of the Honors College, and was responsible for the budget, purchasing and additional business management for the Honors College, said Clark.
“She was always willing to step up and take responsibility for any kind of projects or decisions,” Clark said. “I always trusted her judgement, so she was definitely ready to move up to into a higher administrative position.
