D’Andre Henderson ’18 was determined to work for a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.
"It was important to me as a Black man and growing up with Barack (Obama) as president," said Henderson, who majored in communication.
Since 2021, he’s worked for three caucus members, now as communications director for Rep. Don Davis, a freshman Democrat who represents the 1st Congressional District in rural eastern North Carolina. Each experience, Henderson said, has introduced him to a different slice of Congress.
First, he was digital manager for the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, then led by Democratic Rep. Bobby Scott, whose district includes Old Dominion 91Ƶ. His duties included livestreaming hearings, managing digital content and sending news releases and media advisories.
“I had to learn the D.C. jargon,” Henderson said. “I also learned to focus on what’s important to the person and take myself out of the picture.”
He moved to a higher-profile role in April 2022 – digital manager for Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock, who won re-election that December in a highly publicized race. “It was a time to be alive,” Henderson recalled.
He handled Warnock’s official accounts on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Though they were separate from the campaign, “I had to dot every ‘i’ and cross every ‘t.’ You had to be right. A mistake could sway one person’s vote.”
Henderson joined Davis in January 2023. “This office is communications-first,” he said. Davis aims to deliver one speech a day on the floor. Some might run only a couple of minutes, but Henderson writes them all, as well as a couple of releases every day. He also handles inquiries from national media.
Henderson counts Davis’ “telephone town hall,” which he organized last July, as one of his biggest successes. It attracted nearly 9,000 listeners.
Because Davis is the vice chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, Henderson checks Agri-Pulse.com daily and Politico’s agriculture newsletter weekly. “This job has made me a lot more knowledgeable on agriculture,” he said.
Davis’ bills – usually introduced with “a Republican co-lead,” Henderson said – range from cybersecurity in agriculture to cracking down on counterfeit drugs. Another, co-sponsored with U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans ’11 (R-Va.), would increase support for caregivers of veterans.
Henderson said Warnock’s enthusiastic support of his job switch typifies the attitude of all his bosses in Congress, “Nobody wants you to feel stuck. You’re here to grow.”