Being around horses is a great way to stay mindful, because if you're focused on something else, you can really miss something that might frighten them or make them mad, and then they're 1200 pounds it can go south really quickly. You know, when i was a dean of students, when i was working closely in the student response space, that work is never really done. And when you come out here things are just very tactile. 

It just is really nice to have something that's a little more tangible I've known Kim Kirschnick a long time. I've watched him as the current Cavalier on Horseback. When he said he was going to retire I thought carefully about, would I be able to do it with the professionalism that he brought to it. The answer was yes and I'm super excited to carry it on. I'm the first woman to do it full time and I'm excited about that. It is, i think, a symbol of one of the many ways that UVA can adapt its traditions, keep the things that
matter, but also update them and make them fresh. Serving students is what i've done my entire career. This is a different way to serve students. I know a lot of things about how to make the place special and, you know, I can ride the horse out!

The minutes leading up to the start of the game is some of the most intense time I've ever spent. We've got the curtain behind us and the entire football team behind me hyping themselves up and you can feel that energy! I gotta gallop out there because i've got 90 football players behind me. They're not going to stop no matter what. The traditions of this place really matter to me. Being able to participate in this kind of way, in addition to having been in the dean's office for as long as i have been, I just feel incredibly blessed, incredibly lucky.