At the groundbreaking ceremony for the Temple Grandin Equine Center at Colorado State University, a simulated tour of the new facility was shown.  On a wall was a mural with Temple Grandin’s quote, “The world needs different kinds of minds to work together.”   When Dr. Grandin herself spoke at the ceremony, she did so from her own experience as someone on the autism spectrum.  She says she thinks visually, which allows her to create novel but effective concepts for livestock handling facilities, but when it comes to building those facilities she needs help from people who think analytically/mathematically to do the mechanical designs and she needs help from people who think in words to write the books that share her concepts more broadly.

The facility that will bear her name, and the program that has already born her name for a few years, strives to integrate the three tenets of a land-grant university - education, research, and outreach – around equine assisted services for therapy.  In addition to how equine-assisted services have positive impacts on children on the autism spectrum, faculty research has also looked at positive impacts on seniors with dementia.  Additional target audiences include veterans with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and physically challenged individuals.

The groundbreaking ceremony was very sanitary, with shiny new hard hats and gold-painted shovels used by dignitaries to move pre-piled dirt from one place to another inside an arena next door to the site of the eventual Center.  No horses were present, nor was there any portrayal beyond a photograph of the often profound difference that equine-assisted services for therapy can make in a client’s life.  The organizing philosophy of the Center seems to be to put structure around research on equine assisted services for therapy and structure in the form of a specially designed facility around the educational and outreach arms of the university’s mission as it relates to equine-assisted services for therapy.

In casual conversation I learned that there was minor disgruntlement about Dr. Grandin’s name being on the Center.  Dr. Grandin is an advocate for humane slaughter, while many in the equine community are against slaughter.  Her words in her remarks ‘we need all kinds of minds’ are so important not only globally but also within our own community.

© Jenifer Morrissey, 2020