ACC Equine Training and Management Program

This certificate program allows participants to gain academic, technical, and professional skills in the classic Spanish California/Nevada tradition of equine management, industry and training. Students learn to establish safe, trusting, and responsive relationships with horses. Courses may be taken individually or as a series culminating in a professional certificate. Graduates work in many facets of the equine industry such as farriers; horse trainers; riding instructors; reproduction and nutrition specialists; and equine and barn managers.

Full-time students participate in lectures that are held on Monday and Wednesday evenings for 7-week sessions as well as horse training and horsemanship labs (10 hours per week). Students are considered part-time when taking one or two courses of their choosing based on interest. Our program offers a scholarship for students who have a financial need. You can find the application for a scolarship and further scholarship details here. 

Want to Learn More About ACC's Equine Training & Management Program?

Would you like to learn about this unique & engaging program? Does the Spanish California/Nevada tradition spark your interest? If you would like to know more, please email WCP.

Meet Our Instructor

Damian Ficca is a Denver native who has worked horses throughout the western United States. He is one of a select group of individuals who specialize in traditional western training, with roots in the Spanish-California/Nevada horse training methods. A former Animal and Agricultural Sciences teacher, Mr. Ficca combines extensive knowledge and experience with a love for horses.

What is the Spanish California/Nevada Tradition?

The Spanish California/Nevada tradition is not a pre-packaged program of horse training for someone to sell. It is a tradition that is taught through understanding and practice. The program will develop the horse into a trusted companion in its chosen discipline. That discipline can be ranching, trail riding, competition, driving, equine therapy or any direction you wish to take the horse. To be “One” with the horse is among the most rewarding feelings one can experience.

The tradition is over 2,000 years old and passed on from elders who learned by watching horses in the wild. Training teaches the mind of the horse, not the human. The welfare of the horse is first and foremost in this horse training tradition. If you take care of the horse, the horse will take care of you.

The training process follows simple guides:

• Horses are started, not broken.
• The training process follows a distinct formula.
• Each piece of training can be taught in more than one way.
• Every lesson is individualized for the horse.
• A horse is always in the process of being finished.

For The Welfare Of The Horses

Looking to support this amazing program without taking a class? ACC Foundation has a specific fund for the Equine Training and Management Program to create scholarships for those in need and to support our local barns that do great work in the equine community.

Donate to ACC's Equine Training and Management Program

Check out the Full Program

See Full Course Program Course Descriptions