Jim is a 15th degree black belt (Dai-Shihan), a senior instructor at BTSD San Diego, and is the resident silver-back. He is a Colonel in the US Army Veterinary Corps and has deployed overseas into combat zones several times. He is also certified to teach Shiatsu and Reiki healing. Jim is the founder of Okinawa Bujinkan Taka Seigi Dojo and has been training in the Bujinkan for over two decades and holds Ph.D in Physiology and is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine.

Bill is an 12th degree black belt (Shihan) and is a co-founder of BTSD San Diego and Ready5. He is a Commander in the US Navy Reserve Information Warfare Community involved in intelligence, information operations, space, and cyberspace operations. He recently returned from a one-year mobilization to the Horn of Africa where he served as the Intelligence, Information Operations, and Cyberspace Operations officer for the only enduring US military base on the continent. He has been training in combatives for over twenty years and in the Bujinkan for over 15 years.

Randy Kelley is a 6th degree black belt (Shidoshi) and a senior instructor at Bujinkan Taka-Seigi Dojo San Diego. He is a former US Navy SEAL Sniper and has deployed overseas into combat zones several times. Randy holds a MBA in Global Management from Thunderbird University of Global Management and a B.A. Economics with minors in International Business and Asian Studies from Appalachian State University. Randy is a co-founder of the Dasein Institute.

Laura is a 5th degree black belt (Shidoshi) and a co-founder of BTSD San Diego. She holds a BA in Liberal studies option II Emphasis in Education from San Diego State in addition to a current California teaching BCLAD Credential (Bilingual Crosscultural and Academic Development). She heads up the Ladies Program at BTSDsd, directs the Women's Self Defense Curriculum, and is the director of the JING Kids Program.

Shaun is a 6th degree black belt (Shidoshi) and an instructor at BTSD San Diego. He is a certified phamacy technician and runs the Bujinkan fundamentals classes at BTSD San Diego. He has studied several martial arts styles including muay-thai and wushu and is currently a student at University of Phoenix pursuing a BA in Criminal Justice / Management.

Sho is a 5th degree black belt (Shidoshi) and an instructor at BTSD San Diego. He holds a BS in Mechnanical Engineering from the University of California San Diego and is the President of ShoMasui Corporation which provides Mechanical Engineering services and consulting internationally. Sho has built a company from nothing to a $22 million success and was invited to and spoken at TedX in Pasadena.

Kevin is a 5th degree black belt (Shidoshi) in Bujinkan and trained for many years in Iaido and other Japanese Martial Arts. He works as legal counsel at Graham Investment Management. Kevin is a sword instructor at BTSD San Diego teaching the formal methods of sword ettiquette and practices. Kevin holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of California San Diego and a J.D. from California Western School of Law.

Craig and Silvia run the Qi Gong program at BTSD San Diego. They are the founders/owners of Vivalachi Alternative Health and Wellness. They learned Qigong 32 years ago in Taiwan and have been providing healing since 1987 and do work with the U.S., British, South Korean and Chinese Olympic teams. They are the real deal. You can read about their story here: Vivalachi About Us. In addition to telling fantastic jokes, Craig has been practicing martial arts for over 40 years, graduated from Cornell University and has a Ph.D in Entomology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Silvia has a Ph.D in Neuroscience from UIUC and during her 27 years of Neuroscience research has done post-doctoral research training at Yale School of Medicine and UCLA Medical School as well as being a research scientist at a pharmaceutical company.