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Equestrian Hires Laura Persons As Jumping Seat Coach

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Equestrian Hires Laura Persons As Jumping Seat Coach

Postby PonyPride » Sun Sep 19, 2021 2:15 pm

From SMUMustangs.com:

SMU Equestrian Hires Laura Persons As Jumping Seat Coach

DALLAS (SMU) – SMU Equestrian head coach Carol Gwin announced on Thursday that Laura Persons has been hired to be the Mustangs' new assistant jumping seat coach. Persons joins SMU with over 15 years of experience in the horse industry.

"I'm excited to welcome Laura to our SMU family and we're thrilled to have her leading our jumping seat program," Gwin said. "Laura is a highly talented professional and is very well-respected across the industry and she's going to be a great addition to our team. Her knowledge and enthusiasm will be a tremendous asset to our program and she's going to be an excellent coach for our student athletes."

Persons replaces Amber Henter, who recently left SMU after three successful seasons with the Mustangs that produced a national runner-up finish and two conference championships.

"We're going to miss Amber on our coaching staff, but she found an opportunity outside of the horse industry that was too good for her to pass up," Gwin said. "Having coached Amber for four years at South Carolina and having gotten to work with her for three great years here at SMU, I'm proud of everything she's accomplished and am grateful to her for the role she played in our student-athletes' lives."

Persons joins the Mustangs following a successful stint at the Dallas Equestrian Center. Her top students have gone on to earn top-10 finishes at Junior Hunter Finals, Championships and Circuit Championships in the High Junior Jumper division at WEF, Team Gold at the NAYRC in Traverse City, Michigan, and a spot on the Young Rider's Nations Cup team for the United States for the upcoming finals.

"I'm very excited to be joining such an elite program at SMU and I'm grateful to Carol, Kris Harris, and Rick Hart for this opportunity," Persons said. "Carol, her staff, and these amazing student-athletes have established SMU as the top equestrian program in the country and I'm really looking forward to coaching such a great group of riders."

Persons started showing on the national "A" circuit when she was seven years old and has competed in and won at many of the premier horse shows in North America, including Indio, Ocala, Spruce Meadows, Culpepper, the Olympic Park in Atlanta, Great Southwest Equestrian Center, The Colorado Horse Park, the Kentucky Horse Park, and Tryon International Equestrian Center.

Standout career finishes for Persons include winning the Duncan Ross' Associates Stake Class in Spruce Meadows, Canada in 2000 as well as having multiple wins in the Large Junior Hunters at HITS Winter Circuit. Persons also developed numerous young hunters and jumpers that have won multiple year end awards both the zone finals and national finals.

In 2006, Persons moved to Houston and worked as an assistant for Tony Font before starting her own training business in Austin.

As the owner and head trainer at Serendipity Farms Austin for 13 years, Persons ran the hunter jumper training program, overseeing operations, training and staff for 50 horses. While competing numerous young prospects in both the hunter and jumper arenas to national awards, she also amassed a resume of successful students. Persons' students have been successful at a national level, earning top-10 placings at events such as $50,000 USHJA International Derbies, and Zone 7 year-end awards and Pony finals.

Persons has spent over 15 years teaching and training both riders and horses. Throughout her career, Persons has been privileged to study under and work with some of the nation's top riders and trainers, including Peter Pletcher, Nona Garson, Anne Kursinski, Chris Kappler and Bernie Traurig.

Persons earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Cornell University. She has two sons, Buck and Quin, who live with her in Dallas.

SMU opens its 2021-22 season on Oct. 2 with a dual Eastern College Athletic Association matchup in Dover, Delaware against Delaware State and UT Martin.
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