Dressage4Kids and Anne Baber Wallis are pleased to announce that Alexa Clegg is the recipient of the $10,000 Dressage4Kids Christian Kennedy Training Grant for 2025.

Thank you to the many generous donors for making these scholarship opportunities possible.

Alexa Clegg is a 22 year-old dressage rider from Winston Salem, North Carolina. She began riding at her local Pony Club Riding Center, Hidden “K” Stables, in Pfafftown, North Carolina at the age of nine. Since then, she has earned her USDF Bronze and Silver Medals under the tutelage of Michelle Hargreaves and Lendon Gray through the Dressage4Kids TEAM program. She has also had the opportunity to train with Olivia LaGoy-Weltz and Eliza Sydnor Romm. In May of this year, Alexa graduated with distinction in Biology from Duke University through the completion of an independent research project examining the therapeutic potential of a yeast model to study Parkinson’s Disease. She plans to attend graduate school and enter the medical field after a gap year to focus on her riding and training.

Always First to Arrive and Last To Leave

Eliza Sydnor Romm writes, “Alexa’s commitment to her craft is evident in every aspect of her training. She is always the first to arrive at the barn and the last to leave, meticulously caring for her horses and continuously seeking ways to improve. Beyond her individual achievements, Alexa is an exemplary team member and ambassador for the sport. She readily shares her knowledge with younger riders, volunteering her time to assist at the barn she grew up in, with many juniors. Her sportsmanship and positive attitude make her a role model both in and out of the competition arena.”

Michelle Hargreaves, British Horse Society Instructor and Executive Director of Hidden K Stables Rescue and Rehab, writes, “Alexa started at Hidden K Stables many years ago as a wide-eyed young lady with a passion for horses and riding. I enjoyed training her over the years—from her first canter transition all the way to successfully competing at PSG. Alexa is one of those students whose talent and natural feel for a horse is only surpassed by her work ethic and dedication to her four-legged team mates. What especially makes Alexa a pleasure to train is her teachability—she is constantly wanting to learn and always has an open mind to instruction. I am excited to see where Alexa will go in the future and am grateful that she has this amazing opportunity.”

“I Am So Indebted To Dressage4Kids”

Upon learning of the scholarship award, Alexa writes, “I was so excited when Lendon called me with the news that I had received the Christian Kennedy Training Grant. I am so indebted to Dressage4Kids and Anne Baber Wallis for making this opportunity possible, and I cannot wait to have the chance to train with Olivia LaGoy-Weltz during the upcoming Florida season!”

The Christian Meriwether Kennedy Memorial Fund was established with Dressage4Kids to support Dressage4Kids’ mission to develop youth riders through training that promotes horsemastership, riding, sportsmanship, education, and fun.

Congratulations, Alexa!