The final touches are being made to a educational and fun three days in Lincoln, Nebraska for the 2009 National Youth Horse Leaders Symposium. Attendees will be offered a variety of educational experiences including tours, roundtable discussions, panel discussions and classroom presentations. A tour of Nebraska Horse Farms will kick off a fun-filled and educational three days in Lincoln on Friday, March 27, 2009. The formal Symposium activities will kick off Friday evening with a welcome reception followed by networking roundtable sessions covering topics relevant to the youth horse industry. The youth will have separate activities to begin a whole weekend of fun. Karaoke will follow to end the evening on a fun note!

Saturday and Sunday morning will bring classroom sessions aimed on three tracks aimed at youth,  adult leaders and industry professionals. The sessions aimed at the youth attendees include “Reining in Your Speaking Anxiety” by Kristen Wilson & Janie Dell of MD, “Understanding Yourself and Your Horse” by Brenda Aufdenkamp of NE, “Horsemanship Built on Basics” from Patty Kelly of PA, “Horse Showing Trends and Fads” from Kathy Anderson of NE and Careers in the Youth Horse Industry presented by David Denniston of CO.   Presentations that offer take home tools and activities for leaders include “Equine Science for You and Me” by Jeannie Griffiths from NY, “4-H Working Ranch Horse Program” from Amy Star of CO, “Games Horse Kids Can Play” from Renee Gore of FL, “Creating an Environment for Youth to Be Successful” from Doug Swanson of NE and “Model Horse Project, More Than Just a Toy” by Renee Gore of FL. Important industry issues that will be covered include “Infusing Environmental Awareness into Traditional Youth Programming,” by Jenifer Nadeau and Emily Alger of CT, “Eat Smart, Be Fit, Ride Better,” from Kristen Wilson & Karol Dyson of MD and “The Story of the Traveling Horse,” from Donna Zang of PA.  A few other topics include “Unbelievable Happenings in Your 4-H Horse Program,” from Abbie Grossnicklaus from KS and a keynote address from Hanna Miller of Arabian Knights in FL titled “Making Horses Mainstream.” On Saturday afternoon attendees will be transported to the University of Nebraska’s wonderful indoor horse facility for arena demonstrations from Mark Lyons – 2008 Extreme Mustang Makeover Champion, Kathy Anderson will offer longeing exercises to help develop a more balanced rider and Amy Star and Monty and Gary Stauffer will cover the Working Ranch Horse Program with activities and demonstrations. Those are a few of the highlights, with many other topics covered! Sunday’s breakfast will feature presentations that the youth have worked on all weekend.

Make your plans to join the youth horse industry Lincoln! The conference facilities of the Holiday Inn in downtown Lincoln coupled with the educational and networking opportunities offered by top notch presenters make this a must attend event! For more information and a complete schedule go to: www.ayhc.com or call 800-TRY-AYHC or email: info@ayhc.com.