Education

SWVHJA Education Committee Release
The SWVHJA mission is to promote and encourage good sport and good horsemanship; to better educate both the horse and rider for safety and enjoyment in the saddle and on the ground, and most importantly, to develop knowledge for the humane treatment of the horse. In an effort to promote the mission of our organization, The SWVHJA Education Committee has several new educational opportunities to present to the membership for the 2024 calendar year; a series of monthly horsemanship mini-clinics, a SWVHJA Junior Horsemanship Program as well as an annual mounted clinic. We believe that these opportunities will aid us in accomplishing our mission while also providing our membership with new opportunities both in and out of the show ring.

Monthly Horsemanship Mini-Clinic Series
The SWVHJA Education Committee has put together a calendar of 11 monthly horsemanship clinics to be held throughout 2024, beginning in April and concluding in December. These mini-clinics center around horsemanship or other opportunities for education out of the saddle and the show ring. These clinics will be free of charge for all SWVHJA members, junior and senior. Non-members are strongly encouraged to attend and may do so for a $20 donation to the Association. Clinics will alternate between in-person clinics held locally in SWVHJA, and virtual clinics held through zoom. Topics include; Course Design and Construction, Conformation/In Hand Showing, Collegiate Riding, Veterinary Care, Driving, Sports Psychology, Hoof Care Basics, Professionals Discussion Panel and more. Additional clinics will also be held at the SWVHJA Annual Horse Show. The calendar accompanying this release will detail dates, times, topic, location, and clinician. Members will need to sign up online a week in advance for the clinics via a virtual signup at:

tinyurl.com/swvhjasignup

SWVHJA Junior Horsemanship Program
The SWVHJA Junior Horsemanship Program is a unique educational opportunity for Juniors through the mini-clinics held throughout the year and at the annual show. This program will give junior members the chance to develop their knowledge of horsemanship, while also providing them the opportunity to offset annual show expenses.

The SWVHJA Junior Horsemanship Program is a year long open lottery, wherein each time a junior attends a SWVHJA Horsemanship Clinic, their name will be entered in the lottery. At the conclusion of the clinic series at the SWVHJA annual show, the lottery will draw 10 enrolled juniors to receive a $100 credit for their annual show entry fees. Juniors will be entered into the lottery one time for every clinic they attend, allowing for them to accumulate multiple chances to receive the annual show subsidization. There will not be repeat awards, so this will be awarded to 10 separate junior members.

SWVHJA Annual Clinic
The SWVHJA Education Committee is in the planning stages of the Annual Clinic. We hope to work in partnership with the Virginia Horse Center as well as various sponsors to provide a mounted clinic for our members. Our hope is to have this clinic after the annual show. We also hope for sponsorship support for this event in order to make it cost effective for our membership. More information to follow.

Mini Clinics Schedule

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