"RIDE ON" PROGRAM
Our program for youth at risk
THERAPEION THERAPEUTIC RIDING CENTER
Therapeion Therapeutic Riding Center’s Youth at Risk program consists of weekly barn management, horse care, and horseback riding lessons for youth that may be at risk for failure in school or socially. This is not a program for youth that are involved with the criminal justice system. Horses accept these troubled youth on a non-judgmental basis, helping them to learn to be open, trusting, cooperative, and appreciative.
Program participants must meet behavioral and academic goals in order to participate. Additionally, they must provide community service hours at Therapeion Therapeutic Riding Center. This work includes cleaning stalls and equipment, grooming horses, and landscaping, such as planting flowers and pulling weeds.
The youth receive a riding lesson for each 2 hours of service completed. They will receive some classroom training in horse anatomy, hygiene, feeding and care. They also may have the opportunity to observe medication and horse hygiene activities and to watch a farrier work.
Volunteer mentors are carefully selected from the community and receive special training to work in this program. The mentors work alongside the Therapeion instructor, helping the youth to build competence, confidence, cooperation, and improve communications and learning skills.
The program provides an opportunity for the youth to learn about horses and to take riding lessons: activities that are normally out of their reach. In addition, they will be "working" to earn their riding time, which will help them understand responsibility. The relationship with their volunteer mentors creates an atmosphere for counseling by both example and word. In addition, the participants can take pride in their support of therapeutic riding.
The program is patterned after At-Risk-Youth programs that have been successfully administered in therapeutic riding centers across the country.
 | ||||||
