Meet Our Symposium Speakers

Dr. Anderson is a horse extension specialist at the University of Nebraska, an AQHA, APHA and NSBA judge, and serves on the youth committee for AQHA. She provides programming in Nebraska in all aspects of horse care and management and is currently working closely with the state of Nebraska to grow horse racing in the state through the Race Nebraska seminar series. Also, she teaches courses on all aspects of horse care, use and management.

Candi began her involvement with horses more than 50 years ago as a youth exhibiting in Hunt Seat, Equitation Over Fences, Western, Trail, Showmanship, and various cattle events. As an adult, she has had success instructing youth riders in addition to coaching contest teams in Horse Bowl, Horse Judging, and Hippology. She has coached high school equestrian teams and hundreds of 4-H club members. She is a retired 4-H and OHSET horse judge and instructor.  Candi has been employed by Oregon State University in a variety of 4-H positions, including program assistant, county agent and in the role she currently serves as 4-H Animal Science Manager statewide. Youth development is her first passion, and “having horses involved becomes the perfect recipe.”

Dr. Brady is an Extension Specialist at Purdue University. She earned her B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Science from Michigan State University. She specializing in the development and dissemination of online educational programming for horse owners and does research about human knowledge, beliefs and attitudes about horse welfare. When she isn’t working, she enjoys riding her new Irish Sport Horse, Hugo, and looks forward to showing him in dressage in the future

Jatelyn “Bug” Burcham, from Illinois has been riding  Arabian  horses  since she could walk and they have been a huge part of her life ever since. She served as the Arabian Region 11 Youth Director, which paved her way to being elected as the Arabian Horse Youth Association (AHYA) Secretary, then AHYA President. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to music, writing, and drawing.

Alaina Cross is the co-coordinator of the NC State 4-H Horse Program, alongside co-presenter Lori Stroud, and has been at NC State in this role for 10 years. She attributes all of her leadership skills to her time in 4-H and loves being part of such a great organization. Outside of work, Alaina trains flat shod gaited horses, is a carded judge with the Walking Horse Owners' Assoc., and enjoys hiking and camping with her family.

Anna Draeger graduated from Murray State University with a BS in Equine Science and a MS in Agriculture. While at Murray, Anna received the Outstanding Undergraduate and Graduate Research Scholar in Agriculture Awards. Anna is a certified Icelandic Horse Trainer and Riding Instructor through the FEIF International Matrix and an Equine Sports Massage Therapist. Anna is now working with the 4-H Horse Program as a Senior Equine Extension Associate at the University of Kentucky.

Dr. Betsy Greene has been a State Extension Horse Specialist for over 30 years, and has an extensive track record in creating, disseminating, publishing, and presenting research based, educational, and understandable materials on livestock/equine health, management, stewardship, biosecurity, safety, and care. Her focus on animal health through good stewardship and preventative actions include curriculums/publications for youth and adults. She and a colleague developed the hands-on SCRUB laboratory curriculum (Science Creates Real Understanding of Biosecurity) as a part of a national Healthy Farms Healthy Agriculture project.

Robert Hartman serves as the Chair of the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program (RTIP) where he oversees the direction of the program.  He also leads the programming efforts for the annual Global Symposium on Racing, hosting over 650 horse racing executives from around the world. He is a proud RTIP graduate with a broad range of horse racing experience, working at Golden Gate Fields, Santa Anita Park, and the New York Racing Association.  He currently serves on the Pima County Horse Racing Commission and served as the co-principal investigator on a recently completed  Economic Contribution Analysis study for the Arizona horse racing industry. 

Hannah Hiiva, resides in Washington and has been around horses since she started taking lessons at 8 years old. Soon, she began showing Arabian horses and has been hooked on horses ever since. She served on the Arabian Horse Association regional youth board for several years before being elected the Region 5 Youth Director. In her spare time, Hannah enjoys both photography and videography, frequently sharing her creative content from horse shows.

Dr. Chelsie Huseman is an Assistant Professor and Extension Horse Specialist at Texas A&M University. She serves the state of Texas by disseminating equine education for both adults and youth through seminars, short courses, and a variety of other educational programs. She gives lead to the Texas 4-H Equine Ambassador Program, which strives to provide 4-H youth the opportunity to develop and practice advanced leadership skills and become advocates for the equine industry in Texas. She currently serves as the President Elect on the board of the American Youth Horse Council

Ya’ah’teeh, my name is Kristy Kinlicheenie, and I am a member of the Navajo tribe from Northern Arizona.  Since 2016, I have worked with the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, focusing on agriculture, 4-H, and youth development. I hold degrees in Veterinary Technology (Navajo Technical University), Equine Science (Colorado State University), and Agriculture Extension Education (University of Arizona). Currently, I am pursuing a doctorate in agricultural education at Texas Tech University. My passion is teaching Native communities about extension, agriculture, and education.

Shane Michael is the County Extension Director and a 4-H Agent for Seminole County in Florida.  His major programming area is youth animal science projects. He holds a BS in Animal Science and an MS in Agriculture Education, both from the University of Florida. Shane has presented workshops at the AYHC Symposium numerous years and  served on the planning committee for the 2020 event.  Shane is currently on the AYHC Board of Directors. 

Dr. Jenifer Nadeau is an Associate Professor and the Equine Extension Specialist for the University of Connecticut. She has been with the university for 23 years and grew up riding and working with horses. Jenifer enjoys trail riding with her students in the UCONN Forest. She also loves hiking and traveling with her boyfriend Dave and their dogs Sheena and Fox.

Debbie Reed is a Senior Program Coordinator in the School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences at the University of Arizona. She earned her BS in Equine Science from Colorado State University and her MBA from the University of Arizona. She collaborates with university extension specialists in equine, livestock, dairy, and STEM in creating in-person and online producer education events and materials for their respective programs. She also organizes and coordinates the Arizona Livestock Incident Response Team (ALIRT), the Arizona Beef Quality Assurance Program (BQA), SCRUB kit fabrication, and the UA Food Safety Consortium.

Lorrie Renker holds a BS Degree in Elementary Education and is a PATH, Intl Certified Master Therapeutic Riding Instructor.  She is the 1997 recipient of the James Brady Professional Achievement Award and the 2021 South Korean Plaque of Merit. Lorrie is an Adjunct Professor at Johnson and Wales University in Providence, MA. She is a long-term equine person and was involved in developing the first four-year degree program in Equine Assisted Services.

Elizabeth Rogers is an Assistant Professor of Practice at the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program (RTIP) where she teaches classes on equine form and function, development of equine athletes, and race track operations and management. She is also a co-faculty advisor of the Horsemen’s Association, a student-led group of University of Arizona students with a passion for the equine. Rogers is a graduate of the RTIP who went on to hold multiple racing official positions at the race track including serving as Racing Secretary at Charles Town and more recently as the Director of Racing at Mahoning Valley. While at Mahoning Valley she coordinated and ran the tracks Welfare and Safety Committee which focused on ensuring the safety of both equine and human athletes as well as the welfare of the equines located at the track.

Haley Rutstein is a graduate student at the University of Connecticut studying Animal Science with a concentration in Animal Physiology, and a specific interest in equine science. She has been riding and competing on the APHA, AQHA, and AMHA circuits for the past thirteen years. Haley is also an avid reader and amateur runner year-round, as well as an ambitious skier in the winter.

Lori Stroud has been Extension Assistant in the Animal Science Department at North Carolina State University for eleven years. She co-coordinates the North Carolina 4-H Horse Program alongside co-presenter, Alaina Cross. Prior to joining NCSU, she taught middle school Agricultural Education and was a volunteer leader and coach with the North Carolina 4-H Horse Program. When she is not at a 4-H function, you can find her cheering on her son’s travel baseball team.

Pebbles Turbeville is the CEO of the Horses and Humans Research Foundation (HHRF). Pebbles holds a doctorate in Sports Management with a leadership emphasis, a master’s degree from NC State, and a BA from Columbia College. She previously chaired the Equine and Sport Studies Department at St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, NC, where she served as an associate professor teaching Therapeutic Horsemanship, Equine Studies, and Sports Management courses while also directing the therapeutic horsemanship program.

The Utah 4-H Horse Ambassadors represent the youth involved in Western, English, Mustang, and Working Ranch Horse Programs. They act as a voice to provide input and actively participate in meetings, activities, events, and shows. As a team, they provide leadership training to existing horse program participants, and develop new programs to promote and extend their reach to a larger youth audience. As leaders of the Utah 4-H Youth Horse Delegation, they provide leadership and guidance to promote a variety of programs throughout the state.