A graduate of the British Horse Society's rigorous training program,
George Halkett has 30 years of experience working
internationally in the horse industry. He was appointed director
of Albion College's Nancy G. Held Equestrian Center in 2004.
A
native of Scotland, Halkett served in the British Army as a
member of the Queen’s Household Cavalry. Throughout his career
he has competed at international competitions, in addition to
training horses and riders who have reached the international
level.
Halkett has run facilities with anywhere from 20 to 300
horses. In the late 1990s, he designed and oversaw construction
of a 300-horse facility for an elite club in Istanbul, Turkey.
As the club's director, he ran several international
competitions, including the FEI Samsung International in
dressage and show jumping and a leg of the Volvo World Cup in
show jumping.
Halkett's students have appeared in everything
from schooling shows to international level competitions in
dressage and jumping, including the FEI Samsung International,
the Volvo World Cup, and the International Intercollegiate World
Championships.
Most recently a coach in the high school riding
program at Stoneleigh-Burnham School in Massachusetts, Halkett's students
won four national titles in three years, including the Interscholastic Equestrian Association National
championships in 2002, 2003 and 2004 and the Interscholastic
Dressage Association National championship in 2002. In addition,
he coached the Stoneleigh-Burnham team to a silver medal at the
Northeast Junior/Young Riders Dressage Championships in 2003.
Halkett holds many certificates, including an international
trainer's passport, and has received numerous awards.
Danielle
Menteer, Associate Director
Previously an instructor and coach at
Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio, Danielle Menteer joined
the staff of the Nancy G. Held Equestrian Center in July of
2007. She holds a B.S. degree in Equine Studies from Lake Erie
and represented the Lake Erie Intercollegiate Horse Shows
Association (IHSA) hunt seat team at the National Finals during
her time as a student there.
Prior to her arrival in Albion, Menteer worked in eastern
Ohio as a professional trainer and stable manager, working with
horses and riders in dressage, hunters, and jumpers. Her
experience is extensive: she has successfully competed on the
Florida winter circuit, shown hunters and jumpers in “A” rated
shows, and earned her United States Dressage Federation (USDF)
bronze and silver medals in recognized dressage competitions,
competing through the FEI level.
Menteer’s most recent accomplishment as an
instructor and coach came in the spring of 2007 when she guided
the Lake Erie College Intercollegiate Dressage Association (IDA)
team to the National Finals.
Menteer’s duties at the Nancy G. Held
Equestrian Center include overseeing daily stable operations and
instructing students. She is also the coach of the College's
dressage team.
