Trainers and Staff

Shannon Betts, Dressage Trainer

A World Champion Morgan Horse competitor with 15 years of training experience, Shannon has been with Mustang Leadership Partners for three years. She works with a variety of breeds, including mustangs, and she applies renowned trainer John Lyon’s method of conditioned response to their development. Shannon calls her own style a “question and answer system,” rewarding her horses for giving the correct answer and building a strong foundation she believes can be used for the lifetime of the horse – regardless of the discipline.

Shannon sees dressage training as a progression of this basic training with the “questions” becoming more complex, and the horse’s “answers” delivered with ever greater speed and skill. Further refining communication between horse and rider and graduating to “college level” training, she draws on the methods of Olympic athletes and professional trainers such as Tami Crawford, Albrecht Heideman, Steffen Peters and others to train champions. 

Jennifer Bryant, Barn Manager

Growing up in Michigan, Jennifer was not always a fan of her grandparents’ dairy farm. As an adult, however, she reconnected with a love of horses and nature. She moved to Tennessee, “rescued” a thoroughbred and, in seeking some training assistance, she connected with Mustang Leadership Partners trainer Shannon Betts. After working with Shannon, Jennifer jumped at the opportunity to combine her managerial background with her love of horses as barn manager of Mustang Leadership Partners.

Jennifer is applying her skills to managing the busy schedules of horses and trainers and the work of the rest of the barn staff. She relishes the physical aspects of the work, is eager to learn more about Natural Horsemanship training, but is equally focused on assisting the owner with outreach programs such as the farm’s involvement with the Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy and PBS documentaries.

Christina Mendoza, Lead MLP Instructor

If you stop by the farm on a Tuesday afternoon, you are sure to hear Christina’s calm, steady voice encouraging and guiding MLP students as they learn new horsemanship and riding techniques. As Lead Instructor for the MLP program, Christina loves teaching and has a keen ability to sense a rider’s apprehension, fears, and readiness to move on in training—a skill that is essential since she works with many girls who have never ridden a horse. She believes that horses and people respond best to calm and consistent training methods, which is reflected in her friendly and patient training approach for riders of all levels. In developing core lessons for the MLP program, Christina draws on her own experience showing at many levels and in many disciplines, from Hunter/Jumper and Cross Country to Dressage, Saddleseat, and Trail/Endurance. The MLP program allows Christina to combine her love of teaching with her passion for Dressage, which she feels is a solid foundation for every horse, rider, and discipline. She also teaches with Natural Horsemanship principals in mind, working with horse and rider to strengthen the bond, open up communication lines, and create a relaxed, safe riding experience.

Tami Crawford

Growing up on an Arabian horse farm in Tennessee, Tami Crawford has always had a love for horses and dreamed as a child of competing at the highest level. Qualifying and competing in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Trials, 2002 World Cup Trials, and numerous Grand Prix championships, Tami is living her childhood dream and, along the way, is helping others realize their dreams. As a trainer, Tami has helped more than 15 people earn silver medals, passing along personal experience and lessons learned from her own trainers: four-time Olympian Robert Dover and world-renowned dressage competitor Linda Zang. Tami has worked with two horses from 3 years old to Grand Prix, the highest level of international dressage competition, and her training expertise has been invaluable to Mustang Leadership Partners since 2007. Though Tami holds multiple medals and has been ranked as high as 25th in the world, her passion for dressage is more than the competitions. She loves that dressage is a never-ending learning experience and feels every horse has something to teach her.