The Okinawan Karate Dojo, Ellicott City

Our daughter has been in the OKD after-school program for the entirety of elementary school and has had awesome caregivers, a ton of friends, a positive growth environment, and a karate green belt achievement in the process. I can't recommend the dojo more highly!

The Okinawan Karate Dojo has been a genuinely transformational addition to our boys' lives since they began in 2023. One particular strength of the dojo is the instructors' ability to make every student feel included and valued. Students are held accountable while given the support to grow; they learn to humbly accept positive criticism and rise to whatever challenge is presented in class that day. Karate has been beneficial for each of our boys' unique needs, ranging from confidence to concentration, and they frequently weave lessons learned at the dojo into discussions about events in their everyday lives. We are very grateful for the staff who make the Okinawan Karate Dojo the special place that it is!

The instructors are fantastic – they truly care about each student’s growth. I'm always impressed at how they've remembered the names of hundreds of students. My son has learned so much about discipline and focus since joining. I’m very grateful for the positive impact they've had on his development.

We have been enrolled in the aftercare program all year and also participating in the two karate lessons each week that come with the enrollment. I cannot express enough the gratitude that we have for the staff here and the environment they provide for the kids. This is a special community to be a part of. They care about the kids and also understand what kids need. Both structure and discipline as well as nurturing the freedom for movement and gym games to release their energy. Our kids also love the special events like Halloween, holiday, movie nights, video game night etc. We are confident this is a safe place (shout out to Sensei Jordan who drives our van). Mr. Nathan, Ms. Debbie, Ms. Jesse, Ms. Emily, Mr. Bobby for organizing their after care fun. And other Sensei’s Stan (owner), Robert, Conner for teaching control and confidence in a positive atmosphere. Thank you for helping us raise our kid!

What a wonderful place for kids to be . It is so friendly and instructors are superb. They welcome you from the beginning and teach your kids as there own. My boys are coming here for more than a year and I have seen how they have built their confidence. They are now not worried about being bullied. Though all instructors are super but I will give big shout out to Sense Robert. The way he is into training kids amazes me. He is so dedicated. When he is out, I feel Okinawa is missing something. Keep up the good work !!