Each sophomore is assigned an unbroke colt to work with for an entire semester. Each day is a challenge and helps to develop time management, as well as horsemanship, skills. The sophomore year is by no means easy but, it is very rewarding. 

General Info:

• Students are assigned one unbroke colt to work with the entire semester.
• Most colts are sent by outside owners. Very few are university-owned. 
• First semester focuses on resistance free, natural horse training.
• Second semester, colts are taught to lunge and line-drive before they are ridden.
• Students learn diverse methods of horse training as well as obtain practical, hands-on experience.
• Instructors are Steve Brown, Mark Smith, Meri Sheffler, Cindy Morehead, Art O'Brien and Linda Werst.
• All students are required to have an annual equestrian physical before being allowed to ride. The physical form can be found using the following link: Equestrian physical
• The Sophomore tack list can be obtained using the following link: Tack List

 Class:

• Meets from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., Monday through Friday.
• Class is divided into three groups.  Each has a riding, showmanship and stall cleaning hour.
• Group time slots will rotate biweekly.
• Students are expected to work their colts in front of the instructors.
• Five instructors are in the arena to help students. 
• Demonstrations are given after feeding and cover techniques that are tested two to three weeks after.

Responsibilities:

• Maintain the care, training and development of the assigned horse.
• Morning feeding.
• Stall cleaning Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
• Work weekends - three per semester; paid; graded; students can pick the days they want to work; feeding, stall cleaning, various barn chores.

Semester Grades - compilation of class grades and barn grades:

• Class grades are taken from attendance, riding tests, evaluations and riding finals.
• Barn grades include stall cleaning, feeding, work weekends, taking horses' temperatures (required daily-can help detect illness), trailer loading, leg wrapping and body scoring.

Finals:

• Held one week before campus finals; an outside judge is hired.
• Conducted similar to a horse show.
• Two to three classes per day for three to four days. 
• Classes include showmanship, colt pleasure, colt horsemanship, snaffle bit futurity, hunter under saddle and hunt seat equitation.
• To show in an English class, students must have ridden English two weeks prior to finals. 
• Although the classes are judged and awards are given, the instructors grade each student individually and placing does not influence the grade.