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Taking the Reins is a positive, centering force for girls that puts them in positions of leadership and gives them the chance to feel success in a non-academic environment.

Often, this translates into success at school as girls gain the confidence and discipline they need to perform.

Taking the Reins is a safe space for personal growth and encourages girls to work together as a team to accomplish a common goal. We teach conflict resolution, communication skills, and develop a stable community the girls can return to for years to come.

Girls need to be outdoors and physically challenged but Los Angeles has few parks or open spaces. Residents of Los Angeles’s District 13, where many TTR participants live, have the least amount of green space in the city and the obesity rate among kids is nearly 30 percent. At Taking the Reins girls can be active and outside in a safe, structured place.

Taking the Reins makes mentorship a priority with a high staff to participant ratio and is a place where girls build relationships—with the horses, the staff, and with each other.

Girls learn important life skills at Taking the Reins including responsibility, confidence, teamwork, leadership skills, and the value of their own voices and creative expressions. These skills go beyond the barn and transform the everyday lives of these girls, opening up opportunities for better futures.