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SMU to add varsity equestrian
University to sponsor 20th sport

April 17, 2003

DALLAS (SMU) - After an exhaustive study by SMU's Gender Equity Task Force and consideration by the Athletics Council, Southern Methodist University will add women's equestrian as its 20th varsity sport as of June 1, Athletic Director Jim Copeland announced today.

"This announcement marks another step in our commitment to enhancing our athletic department and increasing opportunities for our student body," said Copeland. "With the successes of our most recent varsity sport additions, women's volleyball (1996) and women's rowing (1999), we are very encouraged that this program will succeed on the national level as well."

Leading the Mustang program will be newly-appointed head coach Jenny Passow. Passow, an experienced rider and former Southwest Regional Three Day Event champion, is no stranger to the Hilltop, as she has spent the last two years as the Assistant Dean of Student Life at SMU.

"I'm thrilled to have this opportunity," said Passow. "It's a realization of a dream and a true chance of a lifetime. I plan to take this team as far as we can go. If our other programs can send athletes to the Olympics, there's no reason we can't have riders competing on the world stage as well."

"We were extremely blessed to find a coach of Jenny's caliber right here at SMU," said Copeland. "Her 23 years of experience combined with her knowledge of SMU and Dallas made her a perfect candidate for this position."

The team will begin competition in the fall of 2003, and the sport has already received a warm reception from the SMU community.

"Since word of a possible equestrian team leaked out a few months ago, I've had dozens of current and prospective students come by my office to ask how they can join the team," said Passow. "The program is already generating a lot of excitement on campus."

While the NCAA currently does not sponsor equestrian, it does classify the program as an "Emerging Sport," which is a sport recognized by the NCAA that is intended to provide additional athletics opportunities to female student-athletes. Institutions are allowed to use emerging sports to help meet the NCAA minimum sports-sponsorship requirements and also to meet the NCAA's minimum financial aid awards. With the addition of SMU's program, 37 colleges and universities now feature varsity equestrian.

The current national governing body for collegiate equestrian is the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA). Currently SMU and Fresno State are the only Western Athletic Conference schools that sponsor equestrian, but the Mustangs will compete in the IHSA's Zone 7, Region 2, which is comprised of teams from Texas A&M, Texas, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, LSU, North Central Texas, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Southern Nazarene, Stephen F. Austin, Sul Ross State, Tarleton State, Texas A&M - Corpus Christi, Trinity and West Texas A&M.

IHSA, Inc. was established in April 1999 with the purpose of promoting competition for riders of any skill level regardless of financial status. Students compete individually and as teams at both Regional and National levels. With over 300 college teams (varsity and club) and more than 6200 riders, the IHSA is the world's largest intercollegiate equestrian organization.

Collegiate equestrian features both Western and English divisions, and SMU will begin its program competing in the English discipline. The Mustang program will focus on equitation on the flat and hunter-jumper equitation over fences.

The program will begin competition in the fall of 2003.

Knowing nothing of varsity equestrian, who owns the horses? Who pays the vet bills?

Yet more money sucked into the vacuum of Title IX.

Glad to see someone is thinking - those who posted above about "Sucking $$$" are not looking at this in the proper perspective.

This is a way of circumventing Title IX. This could actually be a low cost sport - and the girls that are likely to get any kind of scholarship in this sport would have likely received some sort of academic sholarship anyway - not trying to be "elitest" but those who go to Hockaday and have horses, access to stables etc. usually do fit the profile of a strong applicant to smu and would likely already be receiving $$$. Why not give them the University Scholarship - call it an equestrian Scholarship and then have it offset a men's scholarship?

If only there were some NCAA sport that revolved around sorority rush. We would be title IX compliant in minutes.

Relax, this announcement is a good thing. SMU is trailing in Women's sports participation and this decision will improve our performance and add to the opportunities for Women to compete.

First, the team will attract 40 student athletes (men can compete, but not likely or very many. The size of the team dramatically evens the numbers for Men and Women and probably reduces the pressure to eliminate a Men's Sport.

The number of scholarships does not need to be large. With SMU's demographics, the vast majority of riders will be walk-on's, paying full tuition.

The facilities will be arranged with a local stables, thus not putting additional strain on the lack of space on campus. Horses are not owned by students and can be owned, rented or leased by the school.

The SMU Mustangs will be a future force in the English discipline, not to mention that this will attract more donations than you can imagine. Great proactive step and more logical than other options, such as softball (no land & smaller team), or eliminating one or more Men's Olympic Sports. Remember, football's 85 to 100 players, not to mention the huge costs put other Men's teams (with the exception of BB at risk of surviving). We can argue all we want, but Fresno State just eliminated 4 or 5 sports because of this. West Virginia just knocked off three or four.

"Ride to Victory" now means exactly that for the Ponies!

One of my law partners was asked what his wife was up to these days, he replied that she has a big stud between (you get the picture). Outside of gymnasts, riders are certainly near the top of my list. Great addition!!!

I'm going to repeat what I said in the other thread before anyone gets too silly with this idea. You cant give someone the money from an established academic scholarship and call it an athletic scholarship. Thats fraud. Sorry, but trying to get too cute with the rules has gotten this school in deep trouble in the past, and trying to do what you are suggesting would be a crime that goes beyond the NCAA.

The choice to add Equestrian was purely a financial decision. Similar to Rowing, it has the potential to add the most participants for satisfying Title IX, at the lowest cost. Someone elsse mentioned that Fresno had to drop 4 sports just a few days ago, if SMU doesnt seriously increase its revenue streams, something similar may be just around the corner.

Hopefully this will be a step closer in bringing baseball back to the Hilltop.

From what I understand, one of the reasons it hasn't been is because of Title IX. Now we just have to come up with the millions of dollars to fund the team. Any volunteers?

You obviously don't understand how it works.

SMU awards University Scholarships to students based upon academic merit.

Instead of giving someone a University Scholarship - you give them an equestrian scholarship. The University scholarship could be given to someone else.

There is no low against that.

I am not talking about transferring $$$ out of an academic fund and calling it an athletic scholarship.

Two seperate things.