MSU Football Alumnus, Ashton Henderson, Reflects on His Return to Help Current Student-Athletes
How AD+PR alumnus became deputy athletic director for MSU Athletics
By: Mary Robertson
In 2010, Ashton Henderson graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in advertising. While he was an undergraduate student, Henderson played as a defensive back on the football team under Mark Dantonio’s coaching. Upon graduation, Henderson immediately pursued a master’s degree in public relations while he worked at the Smith Center, the Student Athlete Support Service department at MSU. He says his time working there helped Henderson realize he wanted to work in sports.
“I stumbled across my old business card from when I was a graduate assistant and I have always kept it as a reminder for how far I have come. I know I would not be here without the people that taught me and invested in me at Michigan State,” said Henderson.
During his undergraduate education, Henderson says he learned how to connect with people and step outside of his comfort zone. He combined these abilities with the skills he learned from the Department of Advertising and Public Relations to create a network of people to surround himself with that helped him succeed and obtain new opportunities in the work.
Before returning to East Lansing, Henderson worked for Florida State University, Clemson University and the Detroit Pistons. In his various roles he developed programs to better student-athletes experiences such as Program Seminole Leadership and All Integrity Program. These positions and projects allowed Henderson to gain more experience and build on his skills from his MSU education.
“What brought me back was the people and the ability to have and create an experience for the next generation of student athletes,” said Henderson. “I had an unbelievable journey here and I want their experience to be light years better than mine.”
Henderson returned to East Lansing, Michigan in 2022 to work as the deputy athletic director/championship resources and culture at MSU Athletics. In this position, Henderson oversees various aspects surrounding student athletes, including the student athlete development; nutrition; athletic training; Varsity S club; athletic performance; Name, Image and Likeness. He also oversees wellness; performance; and diversity equity and inclusion sections of Spartan Athletics.
Under Henderson’s influence, Evergreen, MSU’s NIL program, was awarded the “Best Institutional Program in the Nation” at the 2023 NIL Summit. Evergreen won the award because of its innovative approach and educational efforts for students. Moving forward, Henderson’s goal for Evergreen is to continue building momentum and to be leaders that empower our students to learn, innovate and educate.
Henderson also helped create the Alumni STATE of Mind program, an original mental health support initiative that provides information and assistance to all alumni varsity letter winners and their families. Henderson mentioned these programs as some of which he is proudest of at MSU because of the innovative thinking and vision they required.
“The power of sports is truly transformational,” said Henderson. “Sports brings people together, it doesn’t matter what your background is or where you’re from, sports is a unifier and it’s the optimal equalizer; that’s why I do this and why I love working in sports, because it changes lives.”