For more than 125 years, Henderson State University has served as the educational and cultural center of southwest Arkansas. Founded as a private institution in 1890, Henderson has a strong liberal arts heritage that serves as the foundation of more than 75 undergraduate and graduate programs, earning the university its status as the state's public liberal arts university and the only Arkansas institution that is a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges. Henderson State bridges a liberal arts education with students' career aspirations and the needs of the workplace. This is designed to ensure that exploration and creativity remain central to each student's development while better linking the skills learned from a liberal arts curriculum with career aspirations. Henderson State is recognized as one of the nation's most affordable small colleges, and has been named by U.S. News and World Report as a top university for helping undergraduates to pursue an advanced degree. Henderson State's admissions standards and retention efforts ensure student success. The university produces graduates who are leaders in their careers and communities. Henderson's alumni include some of the nation's most successful men and women including Army Nurse Corps Chief and Major General Jimmie Keenan; Dr. Billy G. Hudson, Elliot V. Newman Professor of Medicine, Biochemistry and Pathology at Vanderbilt University; Shannon Curtin, Senior Vice President of Consumer Beauty for COTY; professional golfer Ken Duke and the late Lawrence Hamilton, musician and Broadway star. The university provides its 3,500 students a quality educational experience guided by faculty and staff who are committed to serving a diverse student body from across Arkansas, more than 27 states and 25 foreign countries. Henderson State encourages scholarly activities, creativity and community involvement in a nurturing, personal atmosphere that reflects the university's motto: The School with a Heart(r). Henderson's students study in one of the university's three academic colleges: the Teachers College, the School of Business and the Ellis College of Arts & Sciences. The Teachers College, accredited by CAEP, is ranked fifth best in the nation for preparing secondary-school teachers. Nationally recognized for its teacher-mentor program for first-year teachers, Teachers College also offers the only approved play therapy education center in Arkansas as well as a post-master's degree in educational leadership. Henderson offers both a master's degree in educational leadership and the Master of Science in Education online. The School of Business, accredited by the AACSB, offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in traditional business programs that include opportunities for career preparation such as the Whipple Student-Advised Investment Fund and the annual business plan competition. The school also offers the state's only bachelor's degree in aviation, and qualified graduates of the program have guaranteed interviews with major airlines. The Ellis College of Arts & Sciences offers a comprehensive core of liberal arts courses and houses nationally accredited programs in nursing and music. The biology program offers international undergraduate research experiences and is home to the Simonson Biological Field Station, which provides world-class opportunities for biological field research.

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