By Jennifer Falvey, Standard Correspondent
Woodstock Union High School senior Holly Weglarz, of Hartland, will be leaving for the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio, this fall but she will not be going alone. Weglarz’s sevenyear- old Appaloosa mare will be attending college with her. Weglarz took time out from her busy senior prom preparations for an interview Saturday afternoon and explained why she chose the University of Findlay.
“I just knew I wanted to be around horses for the rest of my life,” she said, “the University of Findlay is one of the top-ranked schools for Equestrian Studies and Equestrian business management.”
“I will be double majoring in Western Equine Training and Equine Business Management. My horse will be part of my classes and will live in a barn on campus,” Weglarz said, “so not only will I be getting an education, she will be getting trained.”
Currently, Weglarz enjoys Western Showmanship, Western Pleasure, Horsemanship and Trails. She studied business administration and equine training at the Hartford Area Career and Technology Center, in addition to her classes at Woodstock Union High School. “I visited the Hartford Area Career and Technology Center in my sophomore year and began classes there in my junior year,” Weglarz said. “I think my experience there will help me in college.” “I have played on the varsity ice hockey team all four years of high school, I played softball two years but then there was not enough time for softball as I was becoming more involved with my love for horses,” she said. “My main activity has been riding horses and the Vermont 4-H program. The Vermont 4-H program has made me who I am today and has taught me so much, even though sometimes I had to learn the hard way.” Earning a bachelor’s degree in Equine Business Management can lead to several career options, such as auction or show manager, equine insurance agent, breed association official, and equine tax specialist, to name a few.
The chance to study at a top-ranked school may be enough to lure Weglarz away from us for four years, but it is not enough to keep her. She plans on returning to Woodstock as soon as she graduates. “I plan to come back to Vermont after college, I am a homebody, I love it here, and I never want to be anywhere else; this is my home, and it always will be,” she said.
This article first appeared in the May 25, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard. For more featured senior profiles, pick up a copy of the Vermont Standard from March 18-June 2. The annual graduation special supplement with be published on June 8. (Newsstand Locations)