CAREERS AT STRIDES RIDING ACADEMY
Join a growing team dedicated to creating confident riders, strong horsemanship skills, and meaningful experiences with horses.
We’re always looking for passionate, reliable, and team-oriented individuals to join us at our Santa Rosa (and Petaluma) locations.
📩 Apply by emailing: stridesridingacademy@gmail.com
Camp Counselor - Santa Rosa
About the Role Strides Riding Academy is hiring one Camp Counselor for three weeks of Summer Camp at our Santa Rosa location. Camp runs June 8–12, June 22–26 & July 6–10.
What We're Looking For The ideal candidate is upbeat, organized, and able to multitask. Horse experience and prior experience working with children are required. Applicants must be 18 or older and able to pass a clean background check.
Position Details This is a part-time, 3-week commitment located in Santa Rosa, CA. Email us at stridesridingacademy@gmail.com to inquire about pay and set up an interview.
AM Feeder/Barn Staff - Santa Rosa
About the Role Strides Riding Academy is looking for a reliable AM Feeder at our Santa Rosa location. The schedule is Monday–Friday, approximately 20 minutes each morning.
Responsibilities Duties include turning horses out, feeding, checking and filling waters, and performing general wellness checks on horses.
What We're Looking For The ideal candidate is reliable, responsible, and a morning person. Horse experience is required and applicants must be 18 or older.
Compensation This position can be paid or set up as a lesson trade — we're flexible! Email us at stridesridingacademy@gmail.com to learn more.
Lead Instructor
About the Role Strides Riding Academy is hiring a passionate, organized, and experienced Lead Instructor to be the heart of our Santa Rosa barn. This full-time role (32–40 hrs/week, weekends required) combines teaching, horse care, and barn operations. As Lead Instructor, you'll be the go-to person at the barn — responsible for lesson quality, horse care coordination, and creating a positive, organized experience for riders and families.
Instruction & Lessons You'll teach beginner and intermediate riding lessons with a fun, safe, and confidence-building approach, covering grooming, tacking, mounting, riding, and dismounting. You'll keep lessons on time and aligned with Strides standards while fostering an encouraging environment for riders and families.
Horse Care & Barn Logistics Responsibilities include managing vet, farrier, dental, and vaccination schedules, tracking health records and Coggins, monitoring horse health and workload, and overseeing feeding programs, supplements, and bedding. You'll also manage tack organization and inventory, coordinate horse moves between locations, oversee turnout and blanketing schedules, and assist with sourcing and rehoming horses as needed.
Customer Experience You'll serve as a welcoming, professional point of contact for families — communicating clearly in person, by text, email, and phone, guiding new clients into the right program, and ensuring families feel supported and informed.
Barn Operations You'll keep the barn clean, organized, and running smoothly, stepping in wherever needed during busy times and maintaining a structured, team-oriented environment.
What We're Looking For The ideal candidate has prior horse experience (lesson program experience preferred), is confident teaching beginner riders of all ages, and has strong communication and organizational skills. You should be dependable, able to multitask in a fast-paced environment, and have reliable transportation. We're looking for someone who is friendly, proactive, patient, and growth-minded — someone who takes initiative and is comfortable being the point person at the barn.
Compensation Inquire for compensation details. Email us at stridesridingacademy@gmail.com to apply or learn more.
Business Operations Manager (Full-Time)
About the Role Strides Riding Academy is seeking an experienced Business Operations Manager to serve as the operational backbone of our growing, multi-location equestrian program. This is a full-time, senior leadership role overseeing staff, scheduling, client experience, sales, marketing, finance, and facilities across our Santa Rosa and Petaluma locations. We are in an exciting phase of expansion and are looking for an operational leader who has been through growth before and knows how to build organizations that can keep up with it. You will report directly to the Owner and serve as the primary operational leader across all departments.
Operations & Leadership You'll lead daily operations across locations with clarity and consistency, building and maintaining workflows, SOPs, and communication systems that support efficiency and accountability. Responsibilities include identifying operational gaps, implementing sustainable solutions, managing vendor relationships and budgets, and supporting and mentoring staff across departments.
Staff & Scheduling You'll oversee staff scheduling, substitute coordination, and vacation coverage, support new staff onboarding, ensure employment practice compliance, assist with performance management, and maintain a structured, team-oriented environment across all locations.
Client Experience & Administration You'll serve as the escalation point for client issues, oversee lesson program operations including scheduling and rider progression, and ensure a professional, welcoming, and consistent client experience across both locations. This includes managing client communication standards, contracts, and onboarding processes.
Sales & Marketing You'll manage and support the Sales and Marketing departments, ensuring alignment between lead generation, enrollment, and client retention goals, and monitoring weekly sales reporting and campaign execution.
Finance & Budget Management Responsibilities include building and managing operational budgets across departments and locations, tracking budget vs. actuals, reporting to the Owner, and supporting invoicing and accounts receivable in coordination with the Finance team.
Facilities You'll coordinate with vendors and contractors across locations, maintain safe and well-organized barn and office environments, and support capital improvement planning and seasonal preparation.
What We're Looking For The ideal candidate has proven experience in operations or business management — ideally within a growing or scaling company — and is comfortable building systems from the ground up. You should be highly organized, detail-oriented, a strong communicator, and a natural problem-solver who takes initiative and follows through. Experience in the equestrian industry is a plus but not required; a willingness to learn is essential. Most importantly, we're looking for someone who is genuinely excited about expansion and sees new locations and challenges as opportunity.
Compensation Competitive compensation — inquire for details. Email us at stridesridingacademy@gmail.com to apply or learn more.