Photo by Maddy Falkowitz
Happy 2025 to all of our IHSA membership!
Our IHSA Board of Directors met in Orlando for our Annual Meeting in January where we conduct the majority of the organization’s business each year. One of the things that came out of that meeting was for the National Stewards to periodically send out a “Stewards Corner” update to our membership. The purpose of this update is to ensure everyone is aware of what is going on with our organization. For our first Stewards Corner, Amy and I thought it would be helpful to send out a recap of business from the January meeting.
Photo by Hannah Foreman
Extraordinary Rule Change taking affect Spring 2025:
- The board expanded the list of approved judges for IHSA Western shows to include NSBA, AQHA Progressive and AQHA Level I judges.
“IHSA Rule 5201.A. To officiate at an IHSA Hunter Seat Show, a person must be a recognized USEF judge either recorded or Registered in the Division they are to judge. For IHSA Western Shows, a judge must be selected from the APHA & NSBA list of Regular judges as well as AQHA Regular, Progressive and Level I judges. See 5201.B.
Rule changes passed at the Jan board meeting to take affect Fall 2025:
- Rule 1104: The college membership amount is increasing to $350.
- Rule 5201B: The board adjusted the rule for use of unlicensed officials to take into account the challenges certain areas experience with securing licensed officials.
“Any region which has demonstrated ongoing hardship in securing licensed officials must submit a request waiver from the regional president or zone chair to the National Steward three weeks prior to the first show of the academic year to use unlicensed judges during the year. (Any region with an emergency hardship may also make a request to the National Steward.) Any use of an unlicensed judge must have unanimous written approval from all participating school’s coaches. Such approval shall be submitted to the Regional President and National Steward prior to the start of each horse show. (See Rule 3601 & 3602)”
- Rule 5201C: The board adjusted the rule about how often a judge may judge in a region each year.
“A person my judge two shows per region per academic year. If the two shows fall on one weekend, the regional president or zone chair must submit unanimous written approval from all participating school’s coaches.”
Photo by Jordan Atwell-Purcell
Other news from the January IHSA Board of Directors Meeting:
- A policy defining the duties of and election procedure for Western Area Representatives was approved. Please reach out to your Zone Chair or Regional President if you would like to see the details of this policy.
- Several changes were made in Western Realignment in an effort to create more viable areas. Areas impacted are 10, 21, 23, 25, 26, 61, 62 & 63. For specific realignment details, please reach out to your Zone Chair or Regional President.
- In policy discussions with Equisure, the IHSA Insurance carrier, it was clarified that all schooling riders for IHSA horse shows must be at least 16 years old. Show hosts, please plan accordingly.
If there is a particular subject that you would like to see covered in the Stewards Corner, please let us know. All the best for the remainder of the 2024/2025 competition year.
Sherri West, IHSA National Steward, WestSW@hollins.edu
Amy Daspit, IHSA Associate National Steward, cavalierfarm66@gmail.com