Head Instructor
Master Barbara Brand, Head Instructor of Sacramento Taekwondo Club, has trained diligently to become a skilled practitioner and teacher. She began martial arts study in Kenpo in 1974, Taekwondo in 1979, Judo in 1980 and Escrima in 1999. She tested for first through 5th Degree Taekwondo Black Belt under her teacher, Professor Robert Zambetti at CSU Hayward, under Dr. K Min, the highest ranking Taekwondo master in the USA and head of the first US Olympic Taekwondo Team, and under his successor, Master J. Yoon of UC Berkeley. Upon recommendation of Professor Robert Zambetti and Master Jack Amsell, Master Brand was promoted to 6th Degree Black Belt in January, 2008.
Master Brand is a three time USA National Taekwondo Poomsae Team member. As such, she competed and won a bronze medal at the 2007 and 2008,World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships in Incheon, Korea and Ankara, Turkey as a member of the Women's Senior Team. She has 27 years of national level sparring and forms competition and coaching experience. She is a USAT Level 1 coach and the head coach of the Sacramento Taekwondo Club Competition team which competes in local, regional, and national level tournaments.
In 2006, Master Brand was inducted into the CSU Hayward/East Bay, Athlete Hall of Fame.
Master Brand is the author of The Taekwondo Companion, a book which guides students as they review, assess, skill build, observe, and discuss sparring components. As students progress from chapter to chapter, they deepen their strategy and raise the level of their competitive game.
Master Brand has been the tournament director of the California State Taekwondo Championships, the Women and Girls Taekwondo Championship, the Young Athletes' Taekwondo Championship and Sacramento Taekwondo Interclub Tournament.
Master Brand has a first degree Black Belt in Judo, which she tested for in Tokyo, Japan at the Kodokan, the preeminent Judo institution in the world.
In addition to her expertise in the martial arts, Master Brand is a trained educator. She holds a BA, English (CSUHayward 1981), California Professional Clear Teaching Credential (CSUHayward, 1987) and MA, Education - Curriculum and Instruction, Professional Development (CSUSacramento, 2009).
