IEA Awards More Than $100,000 in Cash and Collegiate Partner Scholarships During Their 20th Anniversary Season
Monday, June 20, 2022 (Columbus, OH) – The Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA) awarded $108,050 in cash scholarships and collegiate scholarships during their 20th Anniversary Season in 2021-2022. This total marks the largest single-year distribution of scholarship funds in the history of the organization, which also coincided with IEA’s largest membership season to date – over 14,250 members across the United States.
In addition to scholarship awards, IEA also provides more than $50,000 in financial aid assistance through the IEA Benevolent Fund and private grants.
IEA Scholarship Awards are divided into four main categories:
- Zone Scholarships – Awarded at the Zone level based on an application process. Each Zone conducts their own scholarship awards process and distribution based on their fundraising goals for each season. These scholarships are cash awards given to senior riders.
- Zone Horsemanship Knowledge Test & Zone Sportsmanship Awards – IEA Zones may elect to give additional cash awards to any top-placing rider member for Horsemanship Knowledge Tests or those riders showing outstanding Sportsmanship qualities throughout the season. These scholarship awards are cash awards given to any eligible rider based on the criteria set by the Zone.
- Collegiate Partner Scholarships – Awarded to either Juniors or Seniors at National Finals based on their placings in individual classes. During the 2022 IEA National Finals, three colleges (St. Andrews University, University of Findlay, and Otterbein University) participated in the distribution of these merit-based tuition scholarships. These awards are applicable for every year the rider attends that college or university.
- IEA Founders Scholarships – Established in 2007, IEA Co-founders Roxane Durant and Wayne Ackerer recommended the IEA recognize our senior members in a significant manner. With board approval an annual $15,500 scholarship fund was established which has now grown to $25,000. These cash scholarships have been awarded each year at the National Finals to the top two placing seniors in each individual class for all three IEA disciplines.
IEA is proud to announce the complete list of winners of the 2021-2022 scholarship awards: View the list of winners here.
About the Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA):
Now in its 21st year, the IEA has over 14,200 members across the United States participating in Hunt Seat, Western and Dressage disciplines. The non-profit 501(c)3 IEA was organized to promote and improve the quality of equestrian competition and instruction available to middle and secondary school students (grades 4-12) and is open to public and private schools and barn teams. There is no need for a rider to own a horse because the IEA supplies a mount and tack to each equestrian for competitions. Its purpose is to set minimum standards for competition, provide information concerning the creation and development of school associated equestrian sport programs, and to generally promote the common interests of safe riding instruction. For more information, visit www.rideiea.org
