hunterrider - I have to jump in and plug CoC. Best four years of my life!! Bob and Alicia Story (Bob runs the IHSA team) are the best. They were my Mom and Dad away from Mom and Dad. :lol:
And CoC’s athletic program in general is second to none - when I was there we had the honor of being the only NCAA school to boast a 100% graduation rate.
However, I have to agree with the poster who recommends taking into account what type of college experience you are looking for.
[QUOTE=RiderWriter;6624329]
Oh, boy, do have a look at the sales page, too… $5,000 for an unshown, scruffy, underweight, goose-rumped TB whose sole talent, at least as demonstrated by the photos available, is standing still with a pool liner draped over him. :eek: Yahoo, sign me up! Probably 100 pictures of this fabulous steed, none of which is a single useful confo shot (he’ll let a dog lick his nose, too). Guess “Selling Your Horse 101” wasn’t part of the curriculum at Meredith Manor! :[/QUOTE]
All I can say is :eek:. That horse must be special if he’ll let that girl drape a pool liner over him. Most horses that I know wouldn’t get near that thing let alone wear it.
[QUOTE=SmartAlex;6624680]
COOL! They have a mechanical bull
http://www.meredithmanor.edu/about/tour/fort.asp
Now THERE is some horseback riding training that would come in handy.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I’d say so! Their idea of training is “let’s see who can stay on the mechanical bull the longest”. :lol:
How about their farrier school? Any good?
In the 70’s and 80’s, Bodo Hagen was instructing at Meredith Manor. I believe that he was a German National Team member. He was named to the German Olympic team in the 70’s but his horse died after a reaction to a required vaccination as they were preparing to travel to the Olympics.
He was AMAZING to watch and the horses which he was importing to the US at the time were pretty special. This was before anyone without serious connections could get good German warmbloods into the US. The Germans weren’t allowing their quality horses leave to the US at that point in time.
Kay was still affiliated with Meredith Manor. I would say that the dressage people who had the honor of studying under these two at that point in time were well-trained.
I remember watching them both ride and they were pretty amazing. Bodo especially was lovely to watch on his horses. It was the first glimpse that I saw of what real dressage should look like.
[QUOTE=TarheelJD;6625644]
Wow – as someone pointed out, aren’t the photos on your website supposed to look better than your facilities really are??? The school bus thing reminds me of the Manson Family! I wouldn’t stay in that for free! [/QUOTE]
I am willing to bet that the website DOES make it all look much better, and that in reality those school bus apartments look more like this:
I"ve known grads who came out with pretty good stable management skills; especially grooming and braiding, though inferior to PHC which still had career courses back then; I think it is difficult to put together all aspects of a vocational course in an equine center with housing for both sexes; suitable horses in an area which , has been/ is probably best taught on an apprenticeship basis;); I know, the horses at Morven, many of them ex USET team 
horses, changed my direction and one, "Bean Platter or “Beaner” as Jim Wofford calls him gave me my first “Centered Riding” lesson:cool:
I personally salute any parents who, acknowledge their childs’ interests and dreams and encourage :yes:them to get vocational training in those areas Meredith Manor had gone through the very complicated process to get their program approved as a vocational/ trade school; what these parents/ students do not realize is that , as the wife of a breeding farm manager told me; "you don’t need a diploma to walk hots"which is, the entry level job most of those kids are going to get; of course , they all dream of riding for someone, there was an instructor at Meredith Manor who, told her students that there are very few trrainer/ rider:eek: jobs but, you can always find a job grooming:yes: ; she required students to present one horse fully groomed and ;)braided each day:o
another career graduate horror story
Personally, I feel that telling parents of students thathey will be able to earn a decent living after graduating from one of these places is conscionable;
but colleges do it, too; Worse still imho, are those who say they are preparing riders for the Olympics:lol: and have riders move hundreds of miles with their horses , novice level:eek:, to begin "serious training which would get this horse and rider if they ever went beyond:winkgrin: novice level:lol: to the Olympics:winkgrin:; before we blame the institution , I know that if I wanted to compete at Olympic level in any sport; I would look first at the winners, or, team members and find out who/ where they had trained; I guarantee you it was not a “career:no::o course school; and certainly not that one:mad: I recall a feature article in a major equine magazine on the subject of such schools; many pros were interviewed; I recall Bruce saying” these people with certificates don’t want to get :no:their hands dirty; I know a local horsewoman, pro, who, would agree with that; She called me after an "Olympic candidate "from one of those places came out wanting to see any event prospect this woman pro might have; that night I got a very angry call from this pro; asking, who, this graduate Olympic level rider thought she was:o she had appeared in full bottom, brushed expensive breeches, custom boots with spurs; treated the other pro like a groom;proceeded to get on a nice young 6-7 baby green TB; pronounce that it had had no dressage training and proceeded to yank:eek: and kick:mad: it into a nervous lather then,
tried to jump a 6 " cross rail;keeping the horse “on the bit”:eek: now, this horse had been showing baby green with good results ; in fact, her neighbor, Rodney Jenkins, had looked at the horse and expressed an ;)interest in him for a client wanting a fancy baby green who, might make up to be a 4:yes:;)’ horse;) now, he was back at square 1:cry: Years later she still talks about that person:yes::o
MM was supposed to be good in their early years. In the early 2000 knew someone who attended bailed ASAP, after being kicked and recieved a fractured leg from one of the school horses. This girl went there with lots of experience handling horses, from young stock to stallions.
I just ran into someone who graduated from their farrier program. He is not working in the field and is looking for someone to appentice with. Take that for what it is worth.
Gotta put in a plug for SBC, which is, undoubtedly, one of the most beautiful campuses in the world. Our equestrian program is great, but we don’t offer an Equine Studies major, just a certificate, because we feel that students need to be well rounded and able to make a living should the horse thing not work out. I was surprised to find MM and SBC mentioned in the same sentence, since we have such different programs!
[QUOTE=Perfect10;6629540]
Gotta put in a plug for SBC, which is, undoubtedly, one of the most beautiful campuses in the world. Our equestrian program is great, but we don’t offer an Equine Studies major, just a certificate, because we feel that students need to be well rounded and able to make a living should the horse thing not work out. I was surprised to find MM and SBC mentioned in the same sentence, since we have such different programs![/QUOTE]
Haha yeah…I was shocked that MM came up in the side ads after I clicked on a link for SBC when I was searching on google!
I did two summers there. The first time for a longer program, like 4-5 weeks? and the second time for a two week program. Now, this was in the gosh, very late 70’s or early 80’s? The first time, my primary instructor was Jo Struby for jumping. It was a lovely facility, and there were really nice dorms, not university college dorm quality, but really nice. There was a concrete block building with nice bathrooms and such with a swimming pool next to it. I think there was also an old barn that had been converted to dorm rooms for the older students. A nice cafeteria. My Mom would have never have left me for the summer 9 hours away from where we lived if it hadn’t been super nice. The next year, IIRC this was just after Kay left, I could only do a two week stint because I had a horse of my own that I was going to show pretty heavily. The difference between the first time and second time I went was huge. I think a lot of people must have pulled their nice horses out of there because the horse I was given to ride for the week was an appaloosa (and I love apps) that had a huge, open scrape over almost his entire hind leg and was absolutely not suitable for the discipline I went to learn (wanted dressage basics the second time). I spent a lot of time that I was not riding cold hosing and treating a wound. I left after 3 days. That said, if they are still operating and still accredited, it must not be that bad. They have all the horse barns and what 3 or 4 indoors? That huge one that is 100x300 must still be there. I had one of my huge personal riding “aha!” moments there and will always be grateful for what I learned. The details have blurred over the decades and my memory simply isn’t what it used to be.
One of my co-workers (he’s a middle school math teacher with 30+ years experience) sent his daughter there last year. I knew that she liked horses when I taught her 7 years ago, but I was under the assumption then that she went to a local stable that offered trail rides and such, and did her riding there.
Next thing I know her dad is telling me that she found this incredible place in WV where she’s going to go to school. She’d done ALL the research and they had a placement program, blah, blah, blah.
He asked my opinion…I told him that back in the 70s and early 80s, I’d heard a lot about their programs, but honestly didn’t know much about the program back then. I felt there were other options for his daughter if he wanted the information. He declined and then had to work a 31st and 32nd year in order to pay for the thing (she ‘graduates’ this December, and he’s also retiring in December).
The interesting thing is that she’s stopped in to visit from time to time when she’s off school and she doesn’t strike me as a ‘horseman.’ The photos and videos that she shares with me show a beginner/intermediate rider at best, and her knowledge of basic horse management seems lacking.
She’s in her last term right now, and her dad had to take a few days off to drive her from GA to WV and get her settled. He was telling me about her dorm room (he said the daughter is giddy with delight about it). It’s a converted hayloft above the stables. No bathroom facilities in it. He seemed a bit shocked by it all, but he simply said that he’d never seen his daughter happier.
[QUOTE=searching12321;6626619]
In the 70’s and 80’s, Bodo Hagen was instructing at Meredith Manor. I believe that he was a German National Team member. He was named to the German Olympic team in the 70’s but his horse died after a reaction to a required vaccination as they were preparing to travel to the Olympics.
He was AMAZING to watch and the horses which he was importing to the US at the time were pretty special. This was before anyone without serious connections could get good German warmbloods into the US. The Germans weren’t allowing their quality horses leave to the US at that point in time.
Kay was still affiliated with Meredith Manor. I would say that the dressage people who had the honor of studying under these two at that point in time were well-trained.
I remember watching them both ride and they were pretty amazing. Bodo especially was lovely to watch on his horses. It was the first glimpse that I saw of what real dressage should look like.[/QUOTE]
Okay, my mind can rest now. LOL. I look at their webpage and see a barrel load of crazy, but my first instructor when I was a kid is a MM graduate.
She was a farm/4h kid growing up but by the time she went through the program and started teaching she was and still is probably one of the best dressage trainers I’ve ever had. She has a true gift with children (a huge part of the equation) but she also had a really great program for putting a solid dressage foundation on any rider.
She would have been there during that time so it makes sense. She doesn’t teach any more 
and has a more recent graduate do the teaching.
(One of the last lessons I had with the more recent grad involved doing a bounce exercise in a small group lesson. They were riding 15-16h horses and I was riding a fairly green/catty/kinda nutty 13-14h pony. I asked ‘do we need the change the bounce for the pony?’ she said ‘you’ll be fine’. The moment, the air over the first jump when I felt the pony go ‘oh sh*t!’, I lost a lot of confidence. He didn’t even attempt to jump the second one, crashed through it and bolted around the ring. That was a super day.)
[QUOTE=AllisonWunderlund;6626426]
hunterrider - I have to jump in and plug CoC. Best four years of my life!! Bob and Alicia Story (Bob runs the IHSA team) are the best. They were my Mom and Dad away from Mom and Dad. :lol:
And CoC’s athletic program in general is second to none - when I was there we had the honor of being the only NCAA school to boast a 100% graduation rate.
However, I have to agree with the poster who recommends taking into account what type of college experience you are looking for.[/QUOTE]
I had a wonderful 4 years at CofC as well.
I can’t believe there hasn’t been a troll on this thread defending Meredith Manor!
I attended in the 80’s.They had top notch instructor in all the different areas then,after the closing I cannot comment on what happened.As for my education, I can handle any problem that comes my way…
It’d be fun to look back and say “hey, remember that time I lived in a cargo crate?” maybe not for 1400/month though
Graduates are pretty good at dumping buckets, but not so good at many other things. We had one as a WS last fall. We were able to teach her enough skills that she was a somewhat credible WS for someone else after 4 months in our barn. She was never a very good rider, even though she had been told she was by MM.
[QUOTE=Mara;6625503]
Odd, but Kay Meredith has pretty solid dressage credentials. I know she’s no longer affiliated with MM, but was it this much of a joke when she was involved in it?[/QUOTE]
I have known some much older MM graduates, as in in their 7o’s now, and they had quite solid basic training. Obviously it has been downhill from there.
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