Darlene DeFour, PhD, received the 2016 NWMAF Award of Excellence and has been inducted into the AWMAI Hall of Fame. She holds a 9th degree black belt in San Yama Bushi Ryu Ju-Jutsu and a 6th degree black belt in Kushinda Ryu Shotokan karate. She co-founded the NWMAF Anti-Racism Council. At SDIC starting in 2010, she introduced a course on Applied Microaggressions Defense to the martial arts and self-defense instructors communities, designed to address the subtle forms of racism that often permeate classroom settings. This class as well as the classes that she has given over the last decade were designed to highlight the need for anti-oppression training as a core competency for all self-defense teachers and other professionals committed to social justice. A social/community psychologist, she is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Hunter College. Her research explores violence, racism and sexism and their impact on everyday life experiences.

Come along with me! Let's flow. (MC)

Joint and bone locks can be used to control and subdue an attacker. How can you flow from one to another? In this class we will review the come along series of locking techniques utilized in the San Yama Bushi Jujutsu system. This class can enhance the skill sets of practitioners who study systems that do not emphasis locking techniques.

Master MyTien Duong holds the rank of 5th Degree Black Belt in Moogong-Ryu (Guardians of Peace) Taekwondo. She currently resides in Canada where she owns and operates Martial Arts 360°. She has competed, coached, and refereed in local tournaments. Besides Taekwondo, she has trained in aikido, judo, iaido, qigong, kung fu, Brazilian jujitsu, and Kajukenbo. She enjoys training with people from diverse backgrounds, abilities, and gender expressions. After over 30 years of training, teaching, and learning with talented instructors, she looks forward to sharing this knowledge with other trainers.

Just Keep Kicking or Kicking into the Next 25 Years (MWO)

Fundamental steps will be covered to complete basic Taekwondo kicks (e.g., front kick, side kick, roundhouse, axe kick, crescent kick, and back kick). Instead of traditional methods of executing hundreds of kicks until your body remembers the movements, basic core movements will be used to safely warm-up, engage the core, and keep us kicking for the next 25 years!

Master Terri Giamartino began training in 1978. Eventually finding her way to Cuong Nhu, an eclectic style which combined hard and soft martial arts together under the primary tutalege of John Burns. With a strong base in hard style, Terri expanded her study into the some of the softer influences of Judo and Aikido, adding Wing Chun and Tai Chi to the mix. 

Keeping your Students Motivated (MC)

The purpose of the class will be present ideas and methods to keep students successful and pogressing in your curriculum. Various drills/games, depending on the age group will be introduced to keep up interest and create camraderie within the group. The discussion will include various age groups and how to create a methodology to achieve those goals.

Master Didi Goodman holds the rank of Shichidan in Cuong Nhu, a Vietnamese eclectic style that blends “hard” and “soft.” She founded Redwood Dojo in Oakland, California, in 1992, and has since taught many hundreds of children, teens and adults. She began her martial arts training in college in 1976, in a student-run Taekwondo class. She then trained under women’s martial arts pioneer Pauline Short at Karate for Women in Portland, Oregon, before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area and continuing in Taekwondo. In 1986, she joined the Pacific Association of Women Martial Artists, and through PAWMA Camp was inspired to take up Aikido, then Cuong Nhu, which later became her full-time focus. A writer, editor, and poet, Master Goodman writes often on martial arts topics for books, newsletters and blogs. She is the author of The Kids’ Karate Workbook: A Take-Home Training Guide for Young Martial Artists, from North Atlantic/Blue Snake books, and of two volumes of poetry. In 2014, she was inducted into the Association of Women Martial Arts Instructors Hall of Fame. She served on the AWMAI Board of Directors in from 2017 to 2023.

Disguised Repetition and Managing Multi-Level Classes (MC)

Mastery comes from repetition – but how do we keep it interesting? And how do we manage classes that may include students of many levels and abilities? Whether you teach kids, adults, or both, these techniques will help you manage workouts that are varied and engaging (with time for skill-sharing from participants).

Senior Grandmaster Sunny Graff loves the martial arts and how seamlessly it blends with her passion of empowering women and girls through feminist self-defense. She has trained for over 50 years, is ranked Grandmaster in Taekwondo and Lapunti Arnis, has 29 black belt levels in 6 arts and is a certified posture/alignment specialist. 

In 1985 Sunny founded Women in Movement, a non-profit martial arts/self-defense school for women and girls in Frankfurt, where is a full-time martial artist, teaching all levels, ages, genders, abilities, ethnicities. Sunny feels most at home in the women’s martial arts community and come to AWMAI to recharge and get inspiration from all of you.

Lead with a smile, counter with a laugh and follow up with a (consentual) hug (MWO)

I love to play games. Nothing breaks down barriers between people faster than sweating and laughing together. Friendly competition, partner and group cooperation and communication lighten the atmosphere and our hearts. Games not only warm up our bodies, they lift our spirits. When we laugh together, we build connections and community. I can’t wait to share with you the vast repertoire of games and exercises I’ve acquired over the last half century of training and from my days in improvisational comedy. From ice breakers and name games to partner exercises and group competitive and cooperation drills, the ways to have fun while working out and gaining new skills is endless. Fun and happiness are contagious! Bring your favorite game and share it with the class!

Sifu Wendy Lathrop began her martial arts journey in 1982 when she and a friend decided that at age 30 they needed to do something active to keep themselves fit. It had to be something we would both begin at the same level, which eliminated tennis (her friend's sport) and dancing (Sifu Lathrop's lifelong passion). In the age of Saturday Afternoon Black Belt Theater and Bruce Lee, we were somehow completely unaware of martial arts. But there was a karate school in our neighborhood, in walking distance of our homes so there would be no excuses about “the car won’t start”.

Dragon and Tiger Qigong (MC)

The seven movements in this 1,500 year old Dragon and Tiger qigong system traces energy lines within the body while being gentle on the joints. Also known as a medical qigong, this practice awakens our energy by regulating our breath, body, and mind. While ideally done standing, we can modify the movements to be done seated as well.

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Dawn Monet is a lifelong movement artist, choreographer, performance artist and performing arts experience curator. Her early training is rooted in contemporary dance, yoga, Gyrotonic Method® and expressive arts. She began studying Kajukenbo in 2000 as a femme survivor of domestic violence seeking self-defense skills. Dawn holds the rank of first degree Black Belt and has been teaching Kajukenbo for 15 years with an emphasis on body mechanics, injury prevention/recovery and training longevity. She is especially passionate about teaching women and other gender-marginalized people to find power in movement and joy in their bodies.

Supported Stretch (EMWO) Knee injury? Back pain? Or just too tired to get up? Welcome to supported stretch where we’ll use the stability of a chair to get a top to bottom stretch. From eye balls to big toes, from spine to hamstring, we’ll explore stretch sets to keep you limber and training ready.

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Master Michele Montag holds a 5th Degree Black Belt in Shaolin Kempo, and she is the Chief Instructor and Co-Owner of Shaolin Studios in Pittsburgh, PA. She is also the co-founder of SETpoint Empowerment Self-Defense. Prior to taking over the studio full-time in 2023, Michele had a 20+ year career in higher education administration that included oversight of staff operations, implementation of DEI initiatives, and strategic planning. She holds a PhD in Anthropology from SUNY-Binghamton.

Managing an Instructor Team (LD)

Having help is critical to sustaining a martial arts school, but recruiting and managing a successful instructor team can be a daunting task no matter the size. In this session, we’ll discuss and share ideas about several key questions: Why is having instructional help important? What kind of instructional team might be right for me and my school? How do I set myself up for successfully managing people? How do I recruit instructors?

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Senior Master Lisa Nakamura has studied Shaolin Kempo for the past 43 years and is currently ranked as an 8th Degree Black Belt. She was awarded the honorific title of Go Inkyo Sama in 2023 for her decades of instruction and student leadership. She is also certified as an Empowerment Self Defense instructor by NWMAF. Lisa has actively taught martial arts and ESD for greater than 4 decades. She is also a certified Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) practitioner as well as a certified Mental Health First Aider. Lisa is a Senior Advisor to Shaolin Studios in Pittsburgh, PA, continuing to support the studio that she and her husband originally founded in 2004.

Respecting The Traditions, While Respecting Ourselves (LD)

In a recent AWMAI Teacher’s Lounge, a participant posed a very thought-provoking question around martial arts “cults”. It was a question that struck home for several folks on the call and spurred important discussion of “when are the demands for respect and loyalty to a system or instructor potentially disrespectful and unsafe?”. 

This interactive session will provide an opportunity to learn more about the historic foundation of bushido (and other similar terms) in the martial arts, how it has been adapted to a modern practice, and how we (as both ongoing students and instructors) can safely honor these traditions. Participants will engage in large- and small-group discussions around “What should tradition and respect look like as we train and teach?”. This will be taught from a DEI lens and will include discussion around potential macro- and micro-aggressions associated with being a “loyal student”. (Note: this session will be trauma-informed and survivor focused).

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Instructor Lisa Santi has been training in the Martial Arts for over 40 years. She is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Tang Soo Do, 1st Degree Black Belt in American Style Nunchaku, and she trains in Toyama Ryu, a Samurai sword system. Coaching, instructing, and being a lifelong student of the martial arts is her passion. She is the founder and owner of Turn of the Tide Martial Arts. She has been running her school in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan for 35 years. 

One of her greatest joys is teaching and training alongside her sons Marino & Angelo and her daughter Francesca, and their children.

Strategies for teaching Multiple Attacker Sparring (MC)

Self-defense against multiple attackers can be a scary scenario. I am going to break down the skills you need to optimize your success. Have you heard of “Zombie Sparring”? Now you have. Come see how this tool and many more can help you teach and improve your multiple attacker skills.

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