Alumna Impacts Three Programs With $600,000 Gift

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Denise Henderson

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – University of Arkansas alumna K. Denise Henderson of Hot Springs is impacting three areas of campus with one significant gift.

Henderson’s $600,000 planned gift will be divided between the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences; the Women’s Giving Circle and the Arkansas Alumni Association, with $200,000 benefiting each area.

“We are thrilled that Denise has chosen to invest in these three areas that each hold special meaning to her,” said Chris Wyrick, vice chancellor for university advancement. “Her scholarship support will provide much-needed resources that will allow us to attract and retain high-caliber students. Scholarship support continues to be an excellent way for us to increase our retention and graduation rates, which are key measures of success for research universities such as ours.

“Her endowment for the Women’s Giving Circle is the first of its kind and will significantly benefit that organization,” he said. “The Women’s Giving Circle has grown into a strong group that has a reputation for supporting some of the most innovative programs and research on our campus. Denise’s gift reflects her belief in the circle’s ability to grow a community of philanthropists, and her endowment will provide it with a permanent funding source to ensure its success.”

Henderson majored in foods and nutrition at the University of Arkansas and holds a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics from the Bumpers College. Upon graduation, she joined the Southern Living Cooking School, a division of Southern Living Magazine in Birmingham, Alabama, where she was responsible for teaching and demonstrating recipes and food ideas to large audiences throughout the south. She was then recruited to become a regional spokesperson for Reynolds Wrap Kitchens in Atlanta.

In 1989, Henderson’s career took her from Atlanta to Chicago where she worked for Kraft Foods in the Kraft Kitchens, the largest corporate test kitchen in the world. During her time in Chicago, she earned master’s degree in business administration with an international management focus from Lake Forest Graduate School of Management.

Henderson returned to Arkansas in 2007 to care for her elderly mother. Today, she is continuing her passion for lifelong learning by enrolling full-time at the Central Arkansas Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute in Little Rock.

“I made my gift designations to the university because it has had such an impact on my life and career,” said Henderson. “If not for my degree from the Bumpers College and support from my instructors, the gift would not be possible. My instructors played a major role in my being hired for my first position out of school.”

Henderson’s scholarship gift to the Bumpers College will establish the K. Denise Henderson Endowed Scholarship benefiting undergraduate students enrolled in the School of Human Environmental Sciences.

“We are so thankful to Denise for her gift to the college,” said Bumpers Dean Mike Vayda. “She is a proud home economics graduate, and we appreciate her support of our human nutrition and hospitality innovation program. Her gift will allow us to increase scholarship opportunities for students, which is one of our main priorities.”

The K. Denise Henderson Women’s Giving Circle Endowed Fund will create a permanent endowment for the Women’s Giving Circle, a program that encourages women as philanthropic leaders while supporting worthwhile research and programs on campus through pooled funding from its members. The endowment will give the circle the opportunity to disperse funds regularly through their annual grant-making cycle and enhance the programming capabilities of the organization. 

A member herself, Henderson chose the Women’s Giving Circle as one of her designations because she cares deeply about women’s education in Arkansas.

“Upon returning to Arkansas, I was struck by how few women were in leadership positions,” she said. “I’ve been a member of the Women’s Giving Circle for a few years and have seen the good work they do.”

Her contribution to the Arkansas Alumni Association will be used to support the Mike and Kris Macechko Endowed Alumni Scholarship.

“When I was asked to become a member of the Arkansas Alumni Association board, I was reconnected to the university after living out of state and away from campus for about 20 years,” Henderson explained. “While living in Chicago, I never missed a meeting in six years. Mike Macechko, who was then the executive director, was personally responsible for my joining the board. I had no idea what a special and coveted position it was at the time. Mike worked incessantly to increase Arkansas Alumni Association scholarships, which is why I wanted my contribution to support his scholarship. It is my way of saying ‘thank you’ for the experience.”

Henderson is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association and will be inducted into the Towers of Old Main, a giving society honoring the university’s most generous benefactors.