STAFF
KAT SCOTT
Founder, Executive Director, Instructor
Kat describes GRIT Therapeutic as the culmination of a dream. She is a PATH Registered Therapeutic Riding Instructor and a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Texas. She holds a Bachelors of Science in Psychology from the University of Arizona and a Masters of Science in Clinical Neuropsychology from the University of Tyler of Texas. As a child and adolescent, Kat was a competitive hunter jumper who studied under Kathy McDonald with McDonald Performance Horses in Tucson, AZ. In recent years, has mostly turned showing over to her students. She enjoys spending time with her animals and family and you'll likely see her riding in between sessions.
KATIE MCNEILL
Conditioning Team Lead
Katie moved to East Texas from the Chicago area a few years ago. She has been riding since a very young age, and enjoyed spending many years as a working student under several hunter/jumper trainers and showing in both hunters and equitation before relocating to Texas. She enjoys schooling lesson horses and “project” horses, and is passionate about animals of all kinds. Katie works full time as a small animal vet tech, and loves spending time with her cats, dog, guinea pigs, and husband.
LAINIE LASSETER
Substitute Instructor
Lainie is a Tyler native and has been working with horses for the last 6 years. She worked her way from working student to barn manager at a local barn, and worked for several other barns in between. After Lainie graduated from the University of North Texas with a degree in Psychology, she worked with horses full-time for two years before starting her career in education. She currently teaches 5th grade in Jacksonville ISD. Lainie enjoys riding and showing in hunter/jumpers, and spending time with her semi-retired horse, Foxy.
HAYLEY TURNER
Assistant - Boshears
Hayley moved to East Texas from North Dallas in 2018. She came to horses later in life, deciding to fulfill a lifelong dream, and has been riding at GRIT since 2021. She enjoys the deep spiritual and empathetic connection she feels while spending time with and learning about horses. She works as a photographer alongside her husband with their family business and also writes and performs personal narrative stories about the way she processes life experiences, many of which revolve around her time with horses. She loves creating camaraderie within the pockets of the community she has endearingly found during her time living in East Texas.
THE BARN CATS
Assistant Trainers
Winston (red collar) and Ruthie (pink collar) are our resident Barn Cats. They're very friendly and they love to snuggle.
THE DOGS
Bodyguards
The dogs stay inside during all lessons but if you're volunteering, you may meet one (or all) of them. Alcide (senior labrottie), Khaleesi (white lab mix), and Mack (Doberman Corgi mutt puppy) will tell you to stay off of Kat's porch. They won't allow anyone inside of the house but they're very friendly when they're out and about. Don't worry - Kat will always check your comfortability level before she lets them out :-)