NARHA Equine Therapy Programs

NARHA Promotes Excellence in Equine-Assisted Activities

Apr 19, 2009

Each year, the North American Riding Association for the Handicapped provides therapeutic riding to more than 42,000 disabled persons in the United States and Canada.

The North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (NARHA) provides Equine Assisted Activity and Therapy (EAAT) programs in the United States and Canada through its network of nearly 800 member centers. Each year, more than 42,000 disabled individuals benefit from activities that include therapeutic riding, equine facilitated psychotherapy, interactive vaulting, and competition.

Headquartered in Denver, NARHA’s mission is to “change and enrich lives by promoting excellence in equine assisted activities.” NARHA accomplishes this by fostering safe, professional, and ethical equine activities through education, communication, research, and setting standards for center accreditation and instructor certification. NARHA members include 5,500 individuals, nearly 800 programs, and more than 5000 specially screened and trained horses.

NARHA was founded in Middleberg, Virginia in November 1969 as a clearinghouse for information on therapeutic riding, which evolved in Europe in the 1950s. An impetus for its development was polio victim Liz Hartell of Denmark winning a silver medal in dressage at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki.

NARHA Instructor Certification Programs

NARHA certifies instructors in three areas: Riding, Driving, and Interactive Vaulting, and is developing a fourth certification specialty, Equine Specialist.

Riding: NARHA offers three levels of certification for riding instructors: Registered, Advanced and Master, one of which is required to teach at a NARHA Center. Each level has carries specific skill and knowledge requirements in Equine Management, Horsemanship, Instruction, Teaching Methodology, and Disabilities.

Driving: Carriage Driving is a fast growing sport and a way to offer students with physical, mental, sensory, or emotional disabilities the rewards of interaction and control of a horse or pony while driving from a carriage seat or in their own wheelchair.

Interactive Vaulting: NARHA members now have the opportunity to become certified in this specialty area. Through a certification program that includes a three-day workshop plus a two-day interactive vaulting certification.

“NARHA center accreditation and instructor certification are respected benchmarks among professionals in the field of equine assisted activities and therapies,” says NARHA CEO Carol Nickell. “Earning instructor certification and center accreditation demonstrate leadership and a commitment to safety and the highest professional standards.”

Disabilities Served Through NARHA Programs

Individuals with the following disabilities commonly participate and benefit from equine facilitated therapy and activities:

A section of NARHA, the Equine Facilitated Mental Health Association (EFMHA), founded in 1996, provides equine-facilitated psychotherapy (EFP) for people with psychological issues and mental health needs, including anxiety, depression, and autism.

In 2006 two NARHA centers and one NARHA Certified Advanced Level Riding Instructors offered pilot therapeutic riding to wounded U.S. veterans and Walter Reed Hospital is considering development of future programs.

NARHA Educational Resources

NARHA promotes equine facilitated therapy and related activities through workshops, its annual conference, and publications, including its quarterly journal, NARHA'S Strides, its biweekly e-newsletter, NARHA News, and in reports such as Resources for Research and Education in Equine Assisted Activities & Therapy, a comprehensive 100-page bibliography compiled by Beth Macauley.

In 2006, NARHA was awarded a $5,000 Quality of Life Grant from the Christopher Reeve Foundation to develop The Parental and Professional Information Resource Guide.

How to Contact NARHA

The copyright of the article NARHA Equine Therapy Programs in Accessible Recreation is owned by Andrew Leibs. Permission to republish NARHA Equine Therapy Programs in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.