Equestrian team building completed

In April, Baylor celebrated the completion of phase two construction of the Willis Family Equestrian Center with the dedication of the Carlile Equestrian Team Building.

The new facility provides Baylor's varsity equestrian program with locker rooms, administrative offices, meeting space and a treatment and training room. Made possible by a lead gift from Dr. Kenneth Q. Carlile, BA '69, PhD '96, and his wife, Celia, the facility benefits the 75-plus student-athletes who compete for the equestrian program, which just completed its eighth season.

In that short time, Baylor has already won the 2012 Hunter Seat National Collegiate Equestrian Championship title and the 2010 Big 12 Championship under head coach Ellen White, BA '81, who has led the program from its beginning.

"This is the best of Baylor, because when the need was identified, Ken Carlile said, `I can fix that. I can help that project,'" Baylor University President Ken Starr said. "That is the Baylor Spirit."

The Carliles' gift was made in honor of the Carlile family women, honoring Celia; their daughters-in-law, Regan and Leslie; their granddaughters, Virginia and Gable; and Baylor equestrian's student-athletes, who dedicate hours of preparation in order to achieve excellence.

Ken Carlile has served as a Baylor Regent since 2011, and he and Celia have given faithfully to numerous projects across campus, including the Carlile Geology Research Building, the Ken and Celia Carlile Atrium in the Baylor Sciences Building and the Carlile Geology Renovation. They have also made provision for Baylor students through the establishment of the Kenneth Q. and Celia C. Carlile Endowed Scholarship and stepped forward in leadership through service on the President's Scholarship Initiative Steering Committee.