Hippotherapy: Why the horse?

Lauren Janusz is an Occupational Therapist and Past President of the American Hippotherapy Association, Inc. She is the owner of Brandywine Occupational Therapy, LLC in Wilmington, Delaware. The practice offers school based therapy and outpatient therapy, integrating horses. She obtained her Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences and is a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Hippotherapy (HPCS). She has also served on the Board of Directors of the Delaware Occupational Therapy Association and the Florida Occupational Therapy Association. She is a life long equestrian. When not at the barn, she enjoys adventures with family and friends!

Bonnie Cunningham is a licensed physical therapist in New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, she received her Bachelor’s degree from Boston University, a Masters in Physical Therapy from NYU and a Masters of Public Administration from The New School. She has practiced physical therapy at NYU Medical Center in their rehabilitation, acute care and out-patient departments.

Bonnie has incorporated horses into her practice for 25 years, she has been the President and Executive Director of the American Hippotherapy Association, Inc. (AHA) and coordinating faculty for 20 years, teaching physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech/language pathologists on how to incorporate equine movement into their treatment sessions. Bonnie has taught the AHA curriculum in the United States and Internationally and presented on the topic of hippotherapy at the German Kuratorium. She is a Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist and currently consults with other therapists incorporating equine movement into their therapy practices, for the last 10 years she has been a guest lecturer at Centenary University teaching equine movement and how it is incorporated into hippotherapy. Bonnie became a certified canine rehabilitation therapist in 2022.

She has been a certified therapeutic riding instructor and a classifier for individuals with disabilities who want to compete in dressage. Bonnie has competed in the disciplines of hunter/jumper and dressage, no longer competing, she now trail rides. On her farm she has 4 horses, 1 donkey, 2 miniature donkeys, 3 pet pigs and 4 dogs.

Beth Macauley, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, HPCS, FNAP, ACUE Dr. Beth Macauley is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, MI. She holds a BA, MA, and PhD in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Florida, with a specialization in neurogenic communication disorders.She is the only speech-language pathologist with both a PhD and clinical specialty certification in hippotherapy (HPCS) who is actively engaged in research, teaching, and clinical practice. Dr. Macauley is a well respected leader in the field of equine-assisted services and therapy. She has delivered over 100 presentations across 15 countries, sharing her expertise in speech-language pathology and hippotherapy with a global audience.