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This 2016 photo shows Scott Henderson, who recently had been promoted by the Provo Municipal Council to be the director of parks and recreation for the city.

Courtesy city of Provo

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In this undated photo, Provo Mayor Michelle Kaufusi and Scott Henderson stand by the national "Gold Metal" for have the top parks and recreation department in the nation.

Courtesy Ken VanWagner

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Members of Provo's administrative staff celebrate the last beam being put in place at a traditional topping-off ceremony on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021. Pictured, from left, are Wayne Parker, Rich Ferguson, Jim Miguel, Michelle Kaufusi, Scott Henderson and Isaac Paxman.

Courtesy Provo City

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He has a great big smile and is a tall man, but Scott Henderson is also a humble doer and that is one of the reasons he works well with Provo Mayor Michelle Kaufusi.

After a nationwide search, the Provo City Council gave advice and consent to appoint Henderson as its new city administrator Tuesday. He fills the spot left by Wayne Parker, who recently retired.

Henderson has led Provo’s Parks & Recreation Department for 22 years. Most recently, his seven-year leadership as its director garnered three significant department milestones: becoming nationally accredited, being named “Best in State” and earning the Gold Medal from the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration as the nation’s top parks and recreation department.

“Provo city is a vibrant, successful community experiencing incredible momentum. To continue achieving our forward-looking vision, proven leadership was an absolute necessity for our new chief administrative officer,” Kaufusi said. “Scott has proven himself to be the leader Provo needs by exemplifying our city mission statement, ‘Exceptional Care for an Exceptional Community.'”

Provo has a council-mayor form of government, also known as “strong mayor.” In this form, the council sets policy legislatively through the budget and ordinances while the mayor sets administrative policy and oversees day-to-day operations. Under the direction of the mayor, the chief administrative officer implements approved policy.

Henderson is the first to admit he never envisioned himself as a city administrator. “I have been blessed to have my dream job with Provo City Parks & Recreation,” Henderson said. Originally from Great Falls, Montana, he earned his bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University in parks and recreation management, ultimately earning national accolades within his field.

Henderson continued, “In my experience, there is nothing Provo cannot accomplish for our citizens with a united ‘One Provo’ spirit. It was continually proven in the Parks & Recreation Department and now I’m looking forward to joining our talented Provo leadership team to prove it on a citywide level. It will be an honor to work with those I respect so much, including the mayor’s office, Provo Municipal Council, directors and staff.”

In 2019, Kaufusi appointed Henderson as the project director of the Provo City Hall and Public Safety building. “It was a challenging three-year process requiring he work directly with all departments to understand the intricacies of public safety and protecting citizens while combining it with a citizen-centric, net-zero city hall,” Kaufusi said. “He succeeded on all fronts, including staying on time and within budget during a pandemic and resulting high costs and supply shortages.”

“Boasting an extraordinary track record of success, Scott is uniquely suited for the job of chief administrative officer in Provo city. He is dynamic and energetic. He pushes himself and his team to new heights of achievement and service delivery. I’m excited to watch as his influence now permeates our organization even more,” said Isaac Paxman, Provo’s deputy mayor.

Henderson has brought notoriety to the city not only through the Parks & Recreation Department but as someone who put on a hard hat and gave the mayor his time to help develop the new City Hall and other projects.

“Mayor Kaufusi is driven towards success. I have been an eyewitness to her vision, energy and enthusiasm — it’s contagious and creates a dynamic environment,” Henderson said. “My focus is to going to be trying to keep up with her in delivering mayor and council policies and initiatives in the most effective, efficient manner possible. Our citizens deserve the best and I’m honored to serve this amazing community that has been home to me for more than two decades.”