Horse Illustrated Magazine

The Nancy G. Held Equestrian Center comprises 340 acres on the Albion College campus, making the school the only private college in Michigan with an equestrian center on campus. In July, the Held Equestrian Center became one of only seven British Horse Society (BHS) riding centers in the United States. Only two other colleges in the nation have the BHS certification: Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Penn., and Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio. The BHS designation verifies that the Held Equestrian Center complies with the latest health and safety guidelines for riders and horses and that the standards are kept at the highest level.

Held Center director George Halkett, himself a BHS International Level II Instructor, headed up the College’s bid for approval and is enthusiastic about the progress made by the facility and riding program, all of which were begun at Albion College in the fall of 2004.

“The approval by the British Horse Society gives us high standing among not only collegiate, but all riding facilities nationwide,” Halkett says. “The BHS standards are recognized all around the world so students and riders who come to the Nancy G. Held Equestrian Center will be able to train for international qualifications in riding and teaching.”

Albion College offers students on-site boarding, training and lessons, and Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) and Intercollegiate Dressage Association (IDA) varsity-level competition in dressage and hunt seat. In addition, the Held Equestrian Center hosts clinics featuring top equestrian professionals. The Held Equestrian Center offers accommodation for all disciplines, the most popular being hunters, dressage, show jumping, eventing and western.
 
Additionally, students who wish to earn their international trainers’ passport can train at the Held Center to earn certification through the British Horse Society.

Coupled with the liberal arts education offered by Albion College, which was founded in 1835, the endorsement by the British Horse Society lends a new degree of prestige to the equestrian program.

For more information, visit www.albion.edu.