JOYRIDE CENTER INC
Strengthening Body, Mind and Spirit
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
People with disabilities have very limited choices when it comes to participating in a sport, and having a place where they are accepted just as they are. Also, the choices are really limited once they leave high school, often leaving the young adults with nothing at all to do to give them a feeling of self-worth and contribute to society. Veterans and people with mental health challenges have limited equine therapy centers in the Houston area.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Therapeutic Horseback Riding
Clients learn to control and ride the horse while at the same time strengthening muscles and gaining self-confidence.
JRC Prep - Vocational Education
JRC Prep is a unique blend of vocational training integrated into a worksite. The many facets of JoyRide Center provide rich and diverse opportunities for work-based learning to take place. JRC Prep combines classroom instruction with continuous hands-on work experience. Goals and objectives are based on each student's needs, and our approach is highly individualized. In order to achieve this level of individualization, we maintain a low student/teacher ratio of four students to one teacher and two mentors.
Equine Assisted Learning
Group sessions involving groundwork and equine assisted activities as a learning approach for development of life skills and coping strategies, taught by Path Intl Certified instructors.
Veterans Program
JoyRide serves Veterans through equine-assisted activities and volunteer opportunites.
Where we work
Awards
Top Club 2012
Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Top Hands Horse Show
Affiliations & memberships
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association 2009
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association 2010
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association 2011
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association 2012
PATH, Intl Member Center 2013
PATH, Intl 2014
PATH, Intl 2015
PATH, Intl 2016
PATH, Intl 2017
PATH, Intl 2018
American Hippotherapy Association 2016
American Hippotherapy Association 2017
American Hippotherapy Association 2018
American Hippotherapy Association 2019
American Hippotherapy Association 2020
PATH, Intl 2020
PATH, Intl. 2021
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
JoyRide Center's Therapeutic Horsemanship Program aims to provide a safe and accepting environment where people with disabilities can learn horsemanship skills while receiving therapeutic value to improve physically and cognitively. JoyRide's Day Program provides vocational and pre-vocational training for young adults who have aged out of the school system, teaching them functional life-skills. Our Equine Assisted Learning program serves young people with mental health challenges and we have groups specifically designated for Veterans.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The JoyRide staff consists of certified therapeutic riding instructors and certified special education teachers who focus on the individual needs of each client to help them meet their goals in life. Horsemanship goals might be to sit up without assistance on the back of a moving horse for 5 minutes, to steer a horse through an obstacle course, or to compete in a horse show. The goals of our Day Program clients might be to learn how to write a resume on a computer, learn how to prepare a meal, or how to participate in a group discussion. In an EAL setting, the experiential approach integrates equine-human interaction that is guided by a planned learning experience to meet the identified goals or desires of the participant(s). Working with equines provides opportunities to teach critical life skills such as trust, respect, honesty, and communication.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
JoyRide's Therapeutic Horsemanship and Equine Assisted Learning program utilizes our 10 beautiful acres that contain a covered riding arena, an outside riding arena, a riding sensory course, and trails around the perimeter. We also have an indoor area for "virtual riding" on special riding simulators for days when riding outside isn't possible or for clients with special circumstances that keep them from riding on live horses.
Our Day Program has a large classroom with a dedicated restroom, full kitchen, and laundry facilities. They also have outdoor planters where they grow herbs and plants.
We are fortunate to have a body of very generous donors and have been able to always meet our budget and keep a "rainy day fund" for emergency situations.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
JoyRide Center was established in 2009 as a Therapeutic Horsemanship Center with the mission of helping people with different abilities find more joy in life through equine-assisted activities. JoyRide Center pursues its mission by providing opportunities for all participants to increase competence through the development of functional skills across multiple domains, and to participate productively within a community. Competence and community are integral parts of JoyRide Centers’ programs, and this emphasis has facilitated the enrichment of the lives of JoyRide Centers’ clients, their families, and our volunteers. In 2013, JoyRide Center established a program for a day habilitation for our young adult riders. The program was highly successful and expanded to four full days per week and includes a summer enrichment program. In the Spring of 2022, JoyRide began offering equine-assisted learning group sessions instructed by a PATH (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship) Certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health Learning. These sessions involve equine-assisted activities designed to apply learned experiences to meet client goals. These have been used as a learning approach for the development of mental health, life skills and coping strategies. In the Fall of 2022, JoyRide established a pilot program due to your generous grant that offers classes that involve activities designed to promote horsemanship skills and emotional well-being for US Veterans, Active Duty and Reserve service members.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
JOYRIDE CENTER INC
Board of directorsas of 03/16/2023
Scott Vann
Exp Realty LLC
Term: 2025 - 2022
Mary Brezina
Scott Vann
Guy Hunter
Bryce Speer
Leonard Kalfayan
Rod King
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Not applicable -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/13/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.