AQHA-IEA Outstanding Leader Scholarship Winners

From IEA – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2024

Columbus, Ohio 

The Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA) is proud to announce the winners of the 2nd Annual AQHA-IEA Outstanding Leader Scholarship Awards which recognizes IEA and AQHYA members who have shown outstanding leadership qualities and a commitment to participation in one or both organizations.

Funded through an on-going partnership with the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) and the American Quarter Horse Youth Association (AQHYA), the AQHA-IEA Outstanding Leader Scholarships highlight the similar missions of promoting lifelong involvement in equestrian activities with a strong desire to develop youth involvement and their leadership skills. Through organized competitions, educational programs and leadership opportunities, IEA is focused not only on introducing young athletes to equestrian sports, but also to inspire and facilitate adults to continue their journey in equestrian athletics for a lifetime.

“IEA utilizes thousands of horses across the nation annually in our draw-based competition format, many of which are Quarter Horses,” states IEA Founder and Executive Director, Roxane Durant. “The versatility of the Quarter Horse makes them perfect equine partners for all three of our disciplines (Hunt Seat, Western and Dressage). AQHA has been an industry leader in promoting the breed as well as offering a wide variety of strong youth programs. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with AQHA to cross-promote youth activities and leadership development and collaborate on ideas for growth of the industry.”

“Youth are the future of our industry and supporting youth equestrian organizations is a key initiative of AQHA,” said AQHA Chief Executive Officer Karl Stressman. “With so many American Quarter Horses used in IEA competition, we look forward to bringing that horse-to-rider connection full circle by continuing our partnership and providing expanded scholarship opportunities for IEA and AQHYA members.”

The AQHA-IEA Outstanding Leader Scholarship was open to 10th – 12th grade IEA and AQHYA members who maintained a 3.0 GPA along with an application process detailing their leadership activities, references, and a video.

 

The following award winners will each receive a cash award of $500:

 

• AVERY ADAMSON – 12th Grade
• Halvorson Ranch – Oklahoma City, OK – (Western Region 7)

 

• McKINNEY ATKINSON – 12th Grade
• Flamekissed Equestrian Team – Portal, GA – (Western Region 4) 

 

• ANDIE JONES – 12th Grade
• Southern Breeze Team – Fresno, TX – (Hunt Seat Zone 7

 

• MAKENNA NOON – 12th Grade
• KM Equestrian – Findlay, OH – (Western Region 5

 

• ARIANA SCHNEIDER – 12th Grade
• Lucky Fox Farm – Mufreesboro, TN – (Hunt Seat Zone 4)

 

• ABIGAIL TIBBITS – 12th Grade
• Fountain Valley School – Colorado Springs, CO – (Hunt Seat Zone 8)
• Aspire Equestrian Team – Franktown, CO – (Western Region 8)

 

In addition to winning the AQHA-IEA Outstanding Leader Scholarships, the three Western award winners listed above also happened to be the IEA Western Zone Senior Scholarship Award Winners who were announced at the 2024 IEA Western National Finals in Fort Worth, TX. These cash awards were selected from a separate application process and funded through the IEA Western Scholarship Fund. Cash awards were presented as follows:

• Makenna Noon – $1,000
• McKinney Atkinson – $500
• Abigail Tibbits – $500