New Black Belt Graduates – March 2025

by | Mar 28, 2025 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

We pride ourselves in helping each student achieve their goals and developing their mental and physical strength. This is what attaining a Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do Black Belt requires.

For some of our candidates this journey to Black Belt began in our Knee High Ninja Program, when they were only four years old!

This month, these candidates passed our Arlington Qualifier and the Panel Exam in front of the Jhoon Rhee Masters from Arlington and Falls Church. Our candidates persevered and we would like to present and congratulate our newest Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do Black Belts!

“Tae Kwon Do has taught me three powerful lessons. First, perseverance. I’ve learned that showing up is half the battle. No matter the challenges, as long as I step onto the mat, I’ll find a way to overcome them. Even when faced with a health diagnosis that made me question whether I would ever remember the forms or combinations, I kept going. Each class, especially after belt tests, brought doubts, but with consistent practice, I was surprised at how well I could remember the curriculum. Second, sparring has taught me to be resilient, to push back and to stand up for myself. Tae Kwon Do has empowered me to speak confidently and assertively when faced with challenges. When difficult situations arise at work, I now have the courage to “block” the negativity and confront others, standing firm in my beliefs. I no longer shy away from confrontation. Most importantly, Tae Kwon Do has taught me patience. At home, I was quick to raise my voice, and my kids would be the first to tell you how impatient I could be. But Tae Kwon Do has helped me become more measured and mindful in my responses. I’ve learned to listen, to be calm, and to approach even the toughest situations with patience.”

“After a few years of Tae Kwon Do, I could get to 30-40 pushups in under 2 minutes pretty easily, and I felt more confident than ever. I went into eighth grade a completely different person than I was just a few years ago. I actually started really talking to people, I made good relationships with my teachers, and at the end of the year I was named one of three students of the year and spoke in front of over 1000 people, something I never would have even thought of without the confidence that I built through Tae Kwon Do. I started participating in the leadership program around then as well, and although I took a break for a while, I kept going. I helped with summer fund weeks which really helped build my confidence as a leader, as it was the first time any kid had told me that I was their favorite. I had never felt very comfortable around kids, and I had grown to dislike them a little thanks to my little brothers. However, because of those weeks I spent helping and teaching younger students, I felt like I finally understood why someone would want to become a teacher.”

“Just as my parents had hoped, Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do has given me confidence. Performing loud yells, learning self defense, and speaking in front of my peers and instructors has made me more self assured. For much of my life I was painfully shy and self conscious. I was scared to speak up and was always hiding in the back of the room. The confidence I’ve gained at Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do has allowed me to make new friends and talk to new people. It has also allowed me to overcome my stage fright. I take piano lessons at a studio in Falls Church that requires students to regularly perform
in workshops, recitals and competitions. I have played piano in front of hundreds of people. Just a few years ago this would have been unthinkable, but I have built up the courage, and now it’s a regular event. The second line in the student creed refers to honesty in the heart. Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do has taught me the importance of being honest to myself and honest to others. The harsh truth is that sometimes I fall short with my parents. This isn’t what being a black belt looks like. Honesty is just as important as love in a relationship. Dishonesty leads to mistrust, and without trust, people will not believe me and won’t take me seriously. Being lied to makes people feel betrayed, and it takes time to repair the damage. Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do is helping me improve my character and work on my life skills. The training of self discipline in class and practice at home, talks and lessons taught by the masters, and understanding and emphasizing core beliefs are helping me become a better person.”

“Tae Kwon Do has also helped me with focus. You need to master the small details, because on the black belt test everything that is not the best you can do will lower your grade. I will always tell myself before any soccer game or school test to focus on the small details that make a big difference. Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do has also hugely improved my physical strength. When I started Tae Kwon Do, I could barely do 5 push ups, but now I can easily do 50 pushups in under 2 minutes. It took a lot of time and dedication to do so because I knew there was no other way to gain strength without putting in hard work. Most of the Masters have told their classes, “garbage in, garbage out.” I now understand to practice hard for good results in any area of my life. I have also learned that if I push myself to my limit I will get the best results, so the next time I do that exercise I will do it much better. Tae Kwon Do has also helped me with my other sport, soccer. As I have moved up in level, the game has gotten much more physical. Through sparring and developing confidence to make contact with my partner and then also being prepared to get hit, I have learned skills that have translated to the soccer field.”

“The question “what has Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do done for you” is a question that stumped me for a little while. This question is hard to answer because Tae Kwon Do has done so much for me. Tae Kwon Do has not only helped my physical health, but has also helped my mental health. When I first started Tae Kwon Do, I was around nine, which is older than a lot of the people I know…. Tae Kwon Do has also helped me with my confidence. During Tae Kwon Do, I was afraid to mess up, because I thought people would make fun of me. As I progressed through the belts, I realized that messing up didn’t matter, and it actually made me better. This bled into my life outside of Tae Kwon Do, and I realized the same applied to learning new things. When I first started Tae Kwon Do, I was also extremely shy. I was afraid to talk to people because I didn’t want to say something wrong. Then I started doing the leadership program. Through teaching, I gradually gained confidence. I got invited to do Adaptive Tae Kwon Do, which increased my confidence a lot as well. In my opinion, I wasn’t very good at first, but I gradually became better at teaching through workshops and experience. Now, I can lead presentations and group projects with confidence.”

“My teaching career started in 2018 when I did senior experience with Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do. As an 18-year-old, I was not particularly driven or motivated. In those short few months, I quickly fell in love with teaching and coaching our students. Seeing the effect my teaching had on any given student on any given day really put into perspective how much of an impact I could have. This gave me the motivation to really start becoming my best self. Unfortunately this journey ended after my senior experience and I left for school. I went to school in Pittsburgh, got a job, and became complacent with an unhealthy lifestyle. I was not becoming my best self. After conversations with the important people in my life, I decided that I was not where I was supposed to be in life. I returned to Arlington in the spring of last year to start teaching again. The sense of fulfillment that teaching at Jhoon Rhee gives me is the reason I try to exemplify the standards we hold our students to. Being a person that students look up to means everything to me, so I hold myself to a much higher standard than before. I have found my purpose with teaching, and I truly love doing it everyday.”

“Though I have only been working full time at JRTKD for around 2 years, I’d like t o think I have contributed positively to this institute. In school I received a bachelor’s degree in HES. I studied strength and conditioning, kinesiology, and nutrition. I feel I have taken what I have learned and tried to apply to teaching. During classes, not only do I try to give the students a good workout but also help them warm up properly beforehand as well as give them more sport specific exercises that translate more to TKD. Before I was a teacher, I was a competitor. My years of competition experience has helped me teach the fight class. And I believe since the class was added to the schedule, the level of fighters in the school has risen. I have had the opportunity to travel and train with world champion kickboxers and professional striking coaches. Not only do I use what I have learned and adapt it to our style, but I observe how these teachers teach and try my best to adopt these qualities and emulate them in class.

I still have much to learn and much to give.”