SEVEN STAR DRAGONS KARATE

Specializing in Youth Empowerment

CLASSES

Better in School, Life, and Community

Seven Star Dragons Karate offers effective, community based instruction for beginning and advancing youth students, as well as adults. Students progress through the belt system of Okinawan Shuri Ryu karate. Classes at the Cincinnati Recreation Commission’s North Avondale Recreation Center are open to youth and adults throughout the tri-state area. Instruction can be adapted to meet individual needs.

Visit the School Dojo pages to learn about participating after school enrichment programs. Contact us to discuss bringing one of our programs to your community site.

Programs offered include:

Age appropriate safety skills
Chanbara sword training
Open hand forms
Fitness training
Sparring skills
Weapons forms
Competition team activities
Self-defense
Fun activities
Leadership programs
Therapeutic martial arts

OUR MISSION

Our mission is to teach the art of self-defense in a safe, supportive, and friendly environment. Our youth programs provide a fun and engaging setting where students learn much more than self-defense. They also learn the importance of:

Education
Respect and courtesy
Self-control
Concentration
Working and training with others
Enjoying the learning process

DONATIONS

If you have benefited from this program and would like to help others, please consider contributing. Seven Star Dragons Karate has provided community based services since 1985, including programs through the Cincinnati Recreation Commission and Cincinnati Public Schools.

Donations support:

Scholarships
Competition team expenses
Awards
Equipment, gear, and supplies
Training
Special guests

Your contribution helps us continue serving students and families throughout the community. Donate securely through PayPal using the button below or scan the QR code with your phone.

Donate Securely with PayPal

Scan the QR code to open the secure PayPal donation page.

TESTIMONIALS

Much of the success of Seven Star Dragons Karate comes from students, families, and community members who share their positive experiences with others.

I’m writing you today to express gratitude for the karate classes available at NARC. I started my summers at NARC summer camp when I was 6 years old. Outside of the great activities we were doing as a camp, I stumbled upon a program that changed my life! The Seven Star Dragons karate school. I began classes at the age of 7 and until this very day at the age of 29, I still return to the school with my children. My oldest child is currently enrolled at the karate school for behavioral problems. When my daughter began having issues in school, Sensei was the one I knew could help me for sure and she has helped my daughter improve greatly! Seven Star Dragons karate school is a tradition. A tradition of building bonds and family for the last 38 years. It’s a safe space, and a productive environment for all.

Thank you.

Simone Smith

Seven Star Dragons Karate Black Belt

We could not be more lucky than to be welcomed to the 7 Star Dragons Karate Team by Master Terrell Davis and her amazing and talented students. My daughter is in her third year now with the program and has benefitted from the program in so many ways.

Master Davis is not just an instructor; she is a role model who embodies the values of respect for authority, team spirit, and confidence. Through her teachings, our daughter has learned the importance of respecting authority figures both within and outside the dojo. This has translated into improved behavior at home and school, as she understands the significance of following rules and listening to those in positions of authority.

Moreover, the emphasis on team spirit in Master Davis’s class has instilled in our daughter a sense of camaraderie and collaboration. She has learned to work better alongside her peers, supporting and encouraging one another to reach their full potential. This sense of unity has not only strengthened her bonds with her team but has also taught her valuable lessons about cooperation and teamwork that will benefit her in all aspects of life.

Furthermore, the confidence our daughter has gained through her karate training with 7 Star Dragons is truly remarkable. Master Davis’s encouragement and belief in her abilities have empowered her to push past her limits and strive for excellence. As a result, she has grown more self-assured, both on and off the mat, and approaches challenges with a newfound sense of determination and courage.

Above all, Master Davis’s karate class has been instrumental in building our daughter’s character. Through her teachings, she has learned invaluable lessons about discipline, perseverance, and resilience. These qualities have not only helped her progress in her martial arts journey but have also equipped her with the tools she needs to navigate life’s challenges with grace and integrity.

I do not know of another similar or comparable opportunity that could possibly provide what I have described above to kids in our neighborhood or for the affordable and reasonable cost that is offered. Please support this program which is so extremely valuable to the students and families of 7 Star Dragons.

In conclusion, I am immensely grateful to Master Davis, the 7 Star Dragons and the NARC Dojo for the positive impact they have had on our daughter’s life. Her dedication to teaching physical fitness and instilling essential values such as respect, teamwork, confidence, and character building sets her apart as an exceptional instructor. I wholeheartedly recommend 7 Star Dragons and Master Davis to any parent seeking to nurture their child’s physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

Jenny Rachford

Parent

My daughter has been a part of the NARC karate program since September 2018. She has been more focused and disciplined since joining and had taken on her role as leader in the karate dojo with great pride. This program serves as a positive guide for all children enrolled. They are excited to come to class to learn and also excited to participate in the various karate tournaments. We do not have many instructors who are genuinely invested like Master Terrell Davis is with our children. She makes sure to see everyone grades every quarter and asks frequently about behavior at home and school. The children have a great amount of love and respect for their Sensei and their home Dojo at NARC. This program is a tremendous asset to our children and community and I as a parent am grateful for it.

Cynthia R. Torrey

Parent

Signing my son up for karate lessons with Master Davis was one of the best parenting decisions I have made for my son. Master Davis is a very talented instructor and, without a doubt, one of the best child educators in the city. The Seven Star Dragons students consistently outshine all of the other schools at karate competitions and, even more importantly, they learn respect, resiliency and responsibility. My son has a room full of awards and trophies and he has gained a wonderful sense of himself while consistently growing in confidence and leadership abilities.

Thank you Master Davis for your dedication to educating your students. You are a truly wonderful person and coach!

Bryan Casteel

Parent

My daughter started karate in 2016 with Master Davis. While I thought she was “just taking a karate class,” I quickly realized it is so much more than that. Master Davis works with her students on important life skills: respect, responsibility, and self-esteem. We’ve watched our daughter thrive in this environment and her confidence has soared! She has gone from taking the class once a week, to begging to be able to help in the younger kids class, hang out for Black Belt club, and attend summer classes! We are honored to be part of the community that Master Davis has created.

Heather Gerker

Parent

It was ten years ago that we enrolled our child, a kindergartner at the time, in the Seven Star Dragons karate program. I knew from DAY ONE that we were in the right place. What a journey it has been! Fast forward to today where both of our children are in the program and are active members. Master Davis has found a perfect balance of martial arts instructor, officer (retired), mother-figure, friend, and powerful advocate of youth empowerment. She knows how to get the most out of her students while making the classes safe and fun! The kids absolutely love her and you can see why.

Despite punching, kicking, and self defense being an integral part of a martial arts program, the youth empowerment program Master Davis has built goes far beyond that. The proof of her success can be seen in the decades of work she has already done with Seven Star Dragons. In the ten years I have been part of the Seven Star Dragons family, I have seen remarkable growth and development in the children that attend her classes. Children that once had trouble looking up from the ground or fought back tears attributed to their daily struggles were transformed into strong and confident young people holding their heads up high! These children, becoming a part of the Seven Star Dragons karate family, becoming leaders, becoming adults, becoming role models, helping others, are now giving back to the community. In our growing-ever-more-complicated world filled with stress and danger, Master Davis represents a force for good, a solid foundation on which you can rely.

Most importantly, I find Master Davis to simply be a great person who is inspired to help others, thus inspiring others to follow in her footsteps.

Kevin Hartnell

Parent

Master Terrell Davis

Instructor

Master Terrell Davis is a sixth degree Black Belt and the director of Seven Star Dragons Karate. She is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University and a retired adult probation and parole officer. After earning her black belt in 1985, she began teaching karate, fitness, and character development programs. For more than thirty years, she has trained students at recreation centers, churches, YWCA and YMCA locations, and schools throughout Greater Cincinnati.

Through a combination of life skills, fitness training, mentorship, and engaging activities, Master Davis teaches with praise and patience to help students achieve their goals. Her programs emphasize the connection among mind, spirit, and body. Students have earned thousands of awards while competing through the AAU National Karate Program, Professional Karate Commission, United States Karate Association, Pro-Am, RSKC, and other martial arts circuits.

Her work has been featured by WCPO Channel 5, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Applause Magazine, and Channel 64. Her team also received a City of Cincinnati proclamation from Mayor Roxanne Qualls. In 2017, Mayor John Cranley proclaimed September 2 as Seven Star Dragons Day. That same year, Master Davis and the Seven Star Dragons competition team placed fourth among 70 schools in the Top Competitive Schools category.

Ninety percent of the youth who have earned black belts through her community based programs are attending college or medical school, completing doctoral programs, or have earned a college degree. Former students have gone on to careers with Google, Frost Brown Todd, Cincinnati City Council, the NFL, and Rockwell Automation. Their accomplishments reflect the value of building a strong foundation through discipline, mentorship, and service.

Programs have served hundreds of students through long-standing partnerships that include:

Cincinnati Recreation Commission: Since 1985
Dater Montessori: Since 1999
Sands Montessori: Since 1999
Hyde Park School: Since 2014

“I feel that all kids, no matter what their culture or economic status may be, need to develop a foundation that is rooted in core values, life skills, and appropriate mentorship. This will lead them into becoming responsible, disciplined, respectful, and productive adults who can serve and contribute to their community in a positive way.”

Terrell Davis

VIDEOS

Presentation of City of Cincinnati Resolution R/021-2022 honoring Master Terrell Davis during Black History Month for decades of teaching and mentoring Cincinnati youth.