Ron Mack founded the organization Legacy Equine Academy (LEA) to foster the next generation of professionals working within the Thoroughbred Racing Industry while simultaneously diversifying the landscape.

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According to a recent article in BloodHorse Magazine, Mack founded the non-profit in 2015 to both honor the history of African Americans who were integral to horse racing's early success in Kentucky, and to connect that history to today's African American and racially diverse middle and high school students by educating and exposing them to various career paths in the equine and agriculture industries.

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The BloodHorse Magazine article goes on to explain the program, which has partnered with Fayette County Public Schools, and presents its students with opportunities to visit and network with places and people in the industry. The students also receive an equine curriculum from instructors at Locust Trace AgriScience Center, with LEA acting as a "feeder" program into the Lexington technical high school.

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When we asked Ron Mack about his expectations for the DDBS Awards coming up in just a few weeks he said, “We have the great opportunity to present the first Legacy Legends Award to Alicia Hughes in marketing & communications with the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA).  The award is for epitomizing the advocacy for diversity and inclusion while expanding the sport to new audiences.”

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Mack is excited for the partnership with DDBS and PPAATH (Project to Preserve African American Turf History) in the awards ceremony to be held on Thursday, April 29th.  Mack says, “The partnership will bring opportunity to expand the voice of that new audience within the industry and drive home diversity and inclusion from top to bottom, from C-suite to fan.”

He went on to say that it will help showcase professional opportunities that are within the sport, including ownership, and will widen the scope to give a louder voice to the cause. 

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Mack finds the discovery of new ideas and opportunities by young people most rewarding.  He believes that bridging the rich heritage of the Black Horsemen to today's standards in the industries they help build, has been a mission that, hopefully, will become his ‘Legacy’.

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The DDBS & PPAATH Isaac Murphy Legacy Awards and LEA Legacy Legend Award will be presented on Thursday, April 29th from 5:30-7:30 pm. 

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Read more about Ron Mack and the Legacy Equine Academy: