Katie has spent the past eleven years learning about and working with equine assisted therapies. She has worked with veterans, at-risk youth, individuals with special needs, families, professionals, and individuals in addiction recovery. Her work has included therapeutic riding, equine assisted learning and psychotherapy, horse powered reading, and basic riding instruction. To ensure quality service, Katie has completed numerous certification and training programs to keep up with evidence-based practices in the mental health and equine therapy fields. Additionally, she has dedicated the past six years to researching the impact intentional therapy has on client emotional safety when participating in equine assisted interventions. Katie has completed her MSW from the University of Tennessee to ensure our quality of service matches industry standards.

Education:
Certified Clinical Trauma Professional
Certified Child and Adolescent Trauma Professional
Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA) Certified Instructor
Certified Equine Assisted Learning and Equine Assisted Psychotherapy Instructor
Certified Horsemanship Association Certified Riding Instructor
Doctor of Philosophy in Animal Physiology: Equine Therapy (Mississippi State University)
Master of Social Word (University of Tennessee)
Master of Science in Human Development and Family Science (Mississippi State University)
Bachelor of Science in Animal and Dairy Science (Mississippi State University)

Emma Farnlacher is a junior studying animal science at Mississippi State University. She has been riding for over 11 years. She has been with Dogwood for two years, teaching both Western and English riding lessons. In the future, she hopes to continue working with and teaching others about horses.

Emma Grace Sims is from Tuscaloosa, AL and she is a senior at MSU studying animal science with the plan of attending vet school. She has been riding for almost 15 years, beginning in the hunter jumpers for a few years and then changed to barrel racing 10 years ago. She has been teaching beginner to advanced western riding and barrel racing lessons for the past few years.

Allie Windham is from Booneville, MS and currently in school at Mississippi State for Agricultural Science. She's been riding horses since she was around the age of 4. She completed in 4-H in barrels, poles, and gated. It was such a fun and competitive experience that now she is excited to teach others the ins and outs of horse riding!

Lilly has been riding since she could walk! She originally started by riding english and competing in the hunter jumper world before moving to western. Lilly has been teaching riding lessons for 4 years and owns 5 horses of her own! When she gets a break, you can always find Lilly competing in barrel racing!

Randi is an accomplished equestrian with decades of experience. She is an original Dogwood team member who has stepped away from weekly lessons while pursuing a Masters in Occupational Therapy and a Masters in Social Work. Though she is busy with school, Randi continues to show with and serve as an Assistant Coach for the Ranch Horse Show Team. There is a formal petition on Katie’s desk to have Randi move back to Starkville after graduation in 2026! Be sure to sign that

Alex has been with Dogwood since the dream began. Though he claims to only handle maintenance and landscaping, Alex is an essential part in all program planning, implementation, and evaluation. It is not uncommon to find him working with our contract facilities or assisting in specialty lessons, but Alex’s primary focus is crafting the nutritional program to keep our equine friends in peak health. From routine maintenance to building ramps for our riders, this cowboy keeps Dogwood “5-Star” for all!