PENDLETON, Ore.-Blue Mountain Community College (BMCC) will hold a Grand Opening celebration for its new Equine Center on Wednesday, April 30.
The community is invited to tour the new facility that will be the home of BMCC’s Rodeo teams and provide space for the school’s equine and agricultural science programs from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
“This new center is more than a building-it’s an investment in our students, our programs and a one-of-a-kind community partnership geared toward supporting the regional workforce,” BMCC President Dr. Mark Browning said in a press release on the grand opening.
In addition to allowing students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in agricultural and equine science, the facility will also provide space for competitive rodeo training for both the men’s and women’s BMCC Rodeo Teams.
“Having this type of facility will help recruit more student athletes and help build the program,” said BMCC Men’s Rodeo Coach Trevor Patterson. “It will also provide many fundraising opportunities and increase the team’s community involvement.”
BMCC Women’s Rodeo Coach Jade Crossley also feels that the new facility is a positive for all parties involved, students, student-athletes and the community.
“This new facility is going to benefit the rodeo team immensely,” said Coach Crossley. “It’s going to provide more efficient and effective practice for our team. This new building is going to help our team level up the way we practice and compete.”
BMCC’s Equine Center was built with the support and partnership of the City of Pendleton, the Pendleton Round-Up, the Intermountain Educational Service District, Umatilla County and the Port of Umatilla.
Regardless of the weather, BMCC’s rodeo teams will now be able to train indoors, and the school will now be able to host collegiate rodeo events.
“BMCC will host the Northwest Intercollegiate Regional Finals in the Spring of 2026,” said Coach Patterson. “It also gives us with the opportunity to host a fall or winter rodeo, and we hope to host other equine events that will benefit our program and the community.”
Community organizations will also be able to reserve the facility for training, clinics or equine events in the future.
“Future plans are to have a go-to place for our community and the surrounding communities to keep the equine world alive by providing jackpots, practices, schools, and many other events to contribute to our program and the community,” said Coach Crossley.
Community members can take self-guided tours of the new equine facility and meet the team during the grand opening.
“We want the BMCC Rodeo program to be one of the best in the nation and a facility like this will help immensely,” said Coach Patterson.
The BMCC Equine Center is located at 125 SW 18 Street in Pendleton.
