About us
We teach Taekwondo. We are really teaching everything else.
Discipline, confidence, focus, respect and consistency. The kicks are how we get there — they are not the point.
Since 1985
Four decades in north county
World Martial Arts Academy has been serving families in the Hazelwood and Florissant area since 1985, and under Master D since 2010.
In that time we have watched five-year-olds come through the door barely willing to let go of a parent's hand and leave, years later, as black belts who run warm-ups for the next nervous beginner. We have also handed a first belt to people well into their seventies. That range is the reason the doors are still open.
Two locations, four programs, one standard. Our mission is simple enough to say in a sentence: change lives one person at a time, through martial arts, education and coaching.
How we run a room
Challenging, but not scary. Structured, but not cold. Fun, but still held to a standard.
Getting all three of those right at once is most of the job. Too soft and nothing is earned. Too hard and a seven-year-old decides martial arts is not for them.
Owner & head instructor
Master Greg Dickerson
Known to everyone on the floor as Master D. Direct, encouraging and honest — in that order.
He expects students to work hard, show respect, and keep going when something is difficult. He is also the first person to notice the kid who managed one more push-up than last week and say so out loud.
His conviction, after decades of this, is that martial arts builds habits that outlive the sport — and that those habits show up in school, at home, in other sports, and eventually in a job.
What we believe
Six things we will not compromise on
Consistency beats talent
The student who shows up every week overtakes the natural athlete who does not. Every single time.
Everyone starts somewhere
We take the time to understand where a student actually is, not where the curriculum says they should be.
Respect is taught, not assumed
Real responsibility and real respect — for instructors, for training partners, and for themselves.
Success is bigger than belts
We celebrate the shy kid who spoke up as loudly as the one who nailed a new form.
Families are on the team
The people in the seating area are part of this. We keep you in the loop and we listen when you tell us something.
Instructors keep learning
Our staff train, get coached and get better. We are not asking students to do anything we have stopped doing ourselves.
What families tell us
The things that come up again and again
We do not have to guess what is working — parents tell us at pickup. The same five things surface over and over.
Confidence went up
Usually the first thing anyone notices, and usually within weeks.
Better listening at home
Following instruction on the mat turns into following it in the kitchen.
They stick with hard things
Quitting stops being the automatic response to difficulty.
They found their people
Friendship and belonging, often outside their usual school circle.
The structure helps
A predictable hour with clear expectations turns out to be a relief for a lot of kids.
Come see for yourself
Reading about it only gets you so far
Book a free class, stand in the room for an hour, and decide with your own eyes.