WINDHORSE EQUINE LEARNING

Windhorse seeks to serve as many youth as our capacity allows, and to provide scholarships to all who are in need. Since we started offering programs in 2013, we have served 353 kids and provided more than $24,000 in scholarships. The number of youth we serve has grown every year with more youth returning within the year. In 2019, we served 83 individual youth with 31 returning within the year to participate in more classes. Also in 2019, we moved into a permanent facility where we are able to expand our capacity by offering more classes and providing a stable and sustainable environment for youth, volunteers and our horse herd.

Our goal is to facilitate personal growth, help youth build confidence and self-esteem, enhance focus, reduce stress and anxiety, and foster self-development and awareness through the equine/human bond. By building social/emotional skills, competencies and confidence, we hope to create resilient youth who can successfully navigate their teenage years and become leaders among their peers and productive and contributing members of our community.

Windhorse Equine Learning provides youth ages 8-17 with experiential and reflective learning opportunities with horses, empowering them to discover and realize their full potential through their partnership with a horse. Horses are uniquely effective in these efforts because of their sheer size as well as their gentle and responsive natures. We must have their respect and be their leader or the consequences can be serious. Yet, they desire a leader and are social animals that want to be with people. Youth can be successful and feel a huge sense of accomplishment when they gain the respect of a thousand-pound animal and are able to direct their movements. The teaching opportunities are endless: horses teach us about trust, empathy, communication, responsibility, relationship, and so much more. The program also requires youth to be fully present, focused, and disconnected from all screen devices and distractions; an experience that fewer and fewer youth have in their daily lives.

Since our inception eight years ago, Windhorse has been a leader in forming partnerships for outreach and collaborations in programming. For the last five years, we have collaborated with Montana State University’s College of Agriculture to offer our summer camps at MSU, which provides a facility, horses and staff. In 2020, we are also partnering with faculty from the University’s College of Education, Health and Human Development, and Big Sky Youth Empowerment (BYEP) to conduct a research pilot program on the impact of our programs on feelings of self-efficacy among at-risk youth.

We began partnering with BYEP in 2017 to provide classes to its participants. In 2020, we will provide classes to 32 of BYEP’s 8th/9th graders in the summer and fall. We have also partnered with the Gallatin Valley YMCA to fill summer camp programs since 2014 . We have a PIF (Prevention Incentive Funds) contract with the State of Montana and Gallatin County Youth Probation Services to work with kids in the court system. We have received several referrals from Thrive, and have also collaborated in the past with Eagle Mount, where our staff was trained in therapeutic riding and which provided a facility and horses for Windhorse’s school-year programs. Two of Windhorse’s instructors continue to teach at Eagle Mount.

We believe that these partnerships are key to our organizational and programmatic success and have enabled us to have a stronger community impact. By working with partner programs that have already identified at-risk and low-income youth, we can help those in greatest need and serve more youth. These collaborations give youth access to a wider range of programs benefiting them in different and complementary ways and create a broader and stronger safety net. Support from our community partners has been crucial to our development and growth.

Windhorse Equine Learning moved into a permanent facility on 10.5 acres in southwest Bozeman in the fall of 2019. The facility includes an indoor and an outdoor arena, barn and horse pastures. Currently we have three horses that are dedicated to Windhorse programs, with plans to bring on more. The executive director is also the program director and is a registered therapeutic riding instructor and an equine specialist in mental health and learning with PATH International. She is supported by a dedicated group of 15-20 volunteers who mentor the students in each class and assist with teaching. Windhorse is also supported by a robust board of directors comprised of eight community members who are actively engaged in the governance of the organization. Windhorse also employs a part-time development manager who manages the organizations fundraising activities.

Windhorse began offering programs in 2013. In the seven years we have been in operation, Windhorse has accomplished the following:

● Grew the number of individual youth served annually from to 83 youth in 2019 with a 31% return rate. Windhorse provided 114 class spaces in 2019.
● Achieved outcomes whereby 85% of youth rated themselves higher in key indicators such as self-esteem and self-efficacy in post surveys.
● Built and maintained successful, ongoing partnerships with Gallatin County Youth Probation Services, Big Sky Youth Empowerment, the Gallatin Valley YMCA, and Montana State University.
● Served a total of 353 youth and provided 209 scholarships totaling $24,628.
● Built the annual budget to $153,000..
● In 2019, we leased our own facility, providing stability, sustainability and opportunities for program growth and earned income.
● Developed new earned-income streams to support overhead and build a sustainable financial base.
● Hired an Executive Director and a Development Manager.
● Partnered with close to 50 volunteers to support the program, fundraising and outreach efforts.

What's next?

The goals of the Windhorse Program in 2020 are:

• Increase number of classes provided by 50%.
• Increase number of youth served by 30%.
• Provide scholarships for half youth served.
• Provide research class and anxiety class for free to participants.
• Continue to work with community partners to serve youth in their programs. Find new community partners.
• Implement a new program for middle school youth with anxiety.
• Demonstrate improved levels of self-esteem, self-efficacy and horsemanship skills as reported in pre- and post-program surveys and by parents. Continue to show improvement in more than 75% of students participating.
• Conduct research with MSU and Big Sky Youth Empowerment on impact of programs for self-efficacy.
• Partner with Big Sky Youth Empowerment to serve 32 8th graders in summer and fall workshops.