blewellen1@ualr.edu

501-916-5633

Fine Arts 263

While originally from Texas, Bradly grew up mostly in Sheridan, Arkansas. In 2015, he completed his Bachelor of Arts in psychology with a minor in philosophy at Arkansas Tech University. During his time at ATU, Bradly was involved in several student organizations and worked as a Resident Assistant. These experiences are what led him to discovering his interest in working on a college campus to support students in pursuing their academic and personal passions.

While studying for his Master of Education in Higher Education Administration at Texas Tech University, Bradly worked as a graduate hall coordinator for the Office of Residence Life.
Bradly completed his M. Ed. at Texas Tech in 2018 and secured a role at Arkansas Tech University as an admissions officer with a focus on connecting with students from Southwest Arkansas and Texas. This experience gave him the necessary skills and experience to join the Seattle Promise Outreach team in 2019 where he served as wrap-around support specialist for high school students transitioning into the Seattle Promise program.

 After 6 years living and working in Seattle, Bradly decided it was time to move back to Arkansas to be closer to family and to work in the state that he cared deeply about so he accepted his current role as an academic advisor with the College of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Education. Outside of work, Bradly loves traveling, hiking, spending time with family,
reading/watching all things spooky, and searching for the best coffee shops in the
state!

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cahumphrey@ualr.edu
501-916-5635
Fine Arts 260 (Mondays); Dickinson 419J (Tuesdays-Fridays)

Cheryl considers herself a “Student Specialist” with a heavy background in music and voice in all genres. Pursuing higher education changed her life for the better. Cheryl attended college at the University of Memphis, and as a student singer-songwriter, she created her own degree plan combining Jazz and Studio Vocal Performance with Music Business and Music Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Professional Studies in Music & Vocal Production. During her college journey and afterwards, she gained many accolades in the music industry such as achieving Hollywood success on the popular show American Idol during season 6. She has toured as a background vocalist for many celebrity recording artists and has starred in a couple of music theatre productions: “Effie” in Dreamgirls at The Studio Theatre and “Evillene” in The Wiz at The Weekend Theatre in Arkansas, just to name a few.

When it comes to her being a “Student Specialist,” some of the titles she has served under include Resident Advisor at the U of M; College Camp Counselor at Stax MusicAcademy; substitute for 3 different counties in Tennessee, Georgia, and Arkansas; teacher at Augustine Preparatory Academy; Library Technical Assistant at Arkansas Baptist College; and Administrative Lead & Student Liaison at The James Humphrey Jr. Scholarship Fund, etc.

Cheryl enjoyed working with students so much (and music as well) that she decided to pursue her Master’s degree in her home state of Arkansas by attending the University of Arkansas Little Rock where she received a Master’s of Education with her content area being music & voice. A fun fact about Cheryl is that she is also an entrepreneur with her own all-natural skincare business called Candy Butta Skincare where she makes organic, scented shea-butter-based full body moisturizers; while pursuing her master’s degree, she was selected to be a contestant on ABC’s popular show Match Game with Alec Baldwin where the show featured her skincare product! The celebrity guests tried her Candy Butta on national television, and she also won the show, winning $10,000! That same year, as a vocalist (musically known as CandySoul), she also won first place on Showtime at The Apollo in Harlem, New York. She was featured in ����Vlog��ý Little Rock’s press materials and represented well for the university!

Cheryl is elated to serve at her alma mater ����Vlog��ý Little Rock as an Academic Advisor for the College of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Education and have a hand in helping students achieve their educational goals!

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mmparker2@ualr.edu
501-916-6699
FA 261

Ms. Mercades Parker is a native Arkansan, born in Texarkana, AR but raised in the small town of Ashdown, AR. She is a triple alumnus of ����Vlog��ý Little Rock. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies with concentrations in psychology, sociology, and health sciences. She earned her Master of Social Work degree, is licensed to practice as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and is completing a Graduate Certificate in Business. Ms. Parker has worked in various university departments, including Facilities Management, advising offices, Campus Living, and the Academic Affairs Retention Office. Mercades has mental health counseling experience through her work at Methodist Family Health, The Bridgeway, and the Arkansas State Hospital. As a first-generation graduate and single mother, Mercades has overcome many obstacles faced by students. Mercades is excited about helping students to succeed. She believes, “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” Mercades enjoys mothering her daughter, goldendoodle, and French bulldog, spending time with her family, sports, photography, and binge-watching television series.

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klpalmer@ualr.edu
501-916-6697
FA 259

Karen Palmer, a native of Little Rock Arkansas, has a B.A. in Liberal Arts and an M.A. in Professional and Technical Writing. She has been on staff at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock since 1988 in a variety of roles: Administrative Assistant, Composition Instructor, and Academic Advisor. Karen’s introduction to advising came during her time as an administrative assistant as she prepared advising documents for the faculty. She enjoys meeting with students and getting to know them as they journey to their goal of graduation. Karen advises for Interdisciplinary Studies and Bachelor of Science students on both the main and online campuses, and she encourages her students to pursue the field(s) that they are passionate about. Her philosophy is: “Don’t try to be more than you are, but be all that you are” – Naomi Judd, Country Music Icon.

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lgparker1@ualr.edu
501-916-6701
Fine Arts 256

Leslie Parker is a native to Arkansas, and grew up in Russellville. She went to Arkansas Tech University for her undergraduate degree in International Studies and then got her master’s degree there in College Student Personnel. After graduating, she decided to embark on a new adventure. She taught English for 11 months in China from 2012-2013. Then in 2015, she decided to go back to teaching abroad, this time in South Korea where she lived in Seoul until 2018. Leslie loves adventure, culture, meeting new people, and is thankful she has gotten to travel to many other Asian countries as well.

She has been working at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock since 2018 where she first started working in the Study Abroad office. She loves helping students fulfill their dreams and reach their potential. She is also an active participant in a local ministry called International Friendship Outreach (IFO) that gives opportunities for social and cultural interaction between Americans and internationals in central Arkansas. Leslie is very outgoing, passionate, loves to travel, and enjoys trying new things.

She enjoys working in the CHASSE Student Success Center to further assist students to help make their collegiate experience wonderful and rewarding. She is friendly and a great listener and
loves to be a friendly face students see when they come to CHASSE. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, going to church, attending IFO events, traveling, eating great food and exploring new places, dancing, and listening to podcasts and/or books.

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sjhaughenbur@ualr.edu
501-916-6698
Fine Arts 258

Sarah Haughenbury is from Clinton, Arkansas. In 2013, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology & Anthropology and in Archaeology from Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, Iowa. Her minor was art history. Right after college, she worked two part-time jobs: as a Sales Associate at Dollar General and as a Supervisor of Housekeeping at a motel in Greers Ferry, AR. She studied hard for grad school during this time, and after much perseverance, she was accepted into the University of South Carolina (USC). During grad school, Sarah worked as a teaching assistant. In 2016, she completed a Master of Arts in Anthropology from USC with an emphasis in cultural anthropology. 

As Sarah was completing the thesis for her master’s degree, she secured an academic advising and adjunct teaching position at the University of Arkansas-Monticello (����Vlog��ýM). Here, she discovered her love of working with students and being part of their college support system. She worked at ����Vlog��ýM from August 2016 until November 2019, and then she began her current role as Director of Student Services at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock. In this role, Sarah leads advising and student success initiatives in the College of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Education. 

Sarah loves traveling, dancing, reading, cooking, and spending time with her husband and silly pets!  

Sarah’s Takeaway for Students: 

“College is your opportunity to prepare yourself for an array of careers. Instead of viewing your major as preparing you for one specific job title for the rest of your life, see your major as equipping you with a set of skills that can be transferred or applied across multiple industries and job titles. College teaches you to be adaptable. This is the value of a college education.

As you can see from my job history, I did not graduate from college and immediately snag a role working in higher education. I worked in retail and the hospitality industry for a while as I planned my next steps. Rather than immediately pursuing a doctorate after finishing my master’s, I made the decision to take more time to figure out what I really want to do. I am glad I did this because this hiatus from earning a doctorate led to me landing my first full-time job in higher education which subsequently helped me realize that I love having a career working with students. After a few more years, I was ready for my current leadership role. 

Staff and faculty who work in higher education have very diverse educational backgrounds and career trajectories, and the same can be said for workers in other industries. It is usually not the case that one hat fits all. With all that said, be open-minded to the unexpected twists and turns that life will bring you. I am confident that you will find your way!”

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yppalmer@ualr.edu
501-916-5639
Fine Arts 262

Yvette Palmer is a native of Louisiana and received her BA in Social Work from Louisiana College. She attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas where she received her Master of Divinity degree. 

Yvette was the part-time Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) Director on the campus of LSU-Eunice for 10 years, and then she was the BCM Director for LSU-Alexandria for another seven years. These positions helped her to use the skills that she had learned in social work in listening and counseling as she sought to minister students with different needs. Her theological education helped in ministry. 

She moved to Little Rock in 2006, and due to her passion for working with college students, she began a career in academic advising. Once again, her listening skills came into play as it was primarily a phone advising position. In 2011, she transitioned to ����Vlog��ý Little Rock where she has served as an academic advisor for the past 10 years. Having a Bachelor’s of Arts degree has served her well in knowing how to relate to students, how to be a good listener, how to be a team player, and how to have excellent reading and writing skills. 

Yvette says: 

“My educational journey was a great benefit to my current career. I am so grateful for my mother’s philosophy, which was: ’It is not a matter of ‘if’ you go to college, but ‘when’ you go to college!’

On a personal note, I have been an Arkansan for 15 years. This is a beautiful state with some wonderful people! I love Little Rock with all the amenities that I need but with a hometown feel. I love that Arkansas is the Natural State. I love the state parks and myriad of hiking trails. I have been blessed beyond measure to end up here!”

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