The 2005-2006 school year will mark the Equestrian Club’s final year as a university club.

Next year the organization will become known as the Equestrian Team, UTM newest varsity athletic program.

The club, which was founded five years ago, has kicked around the idea of moving to varsity for about four years.

The decision to go varsity was made in the 2004 fall semester, when it became clear that enough funds would be available to support the transition.

The team will be housed under both the Athletic Department and the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

“The students should be excited about this process and it should be good for them to make this change,” said head coach Meghan Cunningham.

As part of the transition the team will join the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association.

Once there, the team will compete against schools such as Middle Tennessee State, Western Kentucky, and Murray State.

Another change to the club occurred this summer with the hiring of Cunningham, who replaces outgoing coach Dr. Craig Darroch. Cunningham completed her undergraduate work at Virginia Tech before moving on to Kent State, where she was an assistant coach for four years.

Cunningham also earned her master’s degree at Kent State. A second addition to the Equestrian Club was Kristen McDonald, who will serve as the assistant coach and the event coordinator for the Ned Mcwherter Agricultural Complex.

McDonald won three national championships as a student at West Texas University.

Later, McDonald served as a graduate assistant for the West Texas Women’s Equestrian Team.

The Equestrian Club will begin their 2005-2006 slate of activities by competing in the Intercollegiate Horse Show on September 24 in Maryville, Tennessee.