Jerry Beasley has devoted 30 years to developing a world-renowned martial arts program at RU that is the only one of its kind in the United States.

“I walked into his office the spring of 1973 and described my idea,” Beasley said. “Dr. Dedmon was very considerate and interested. He talked to me for about 10 to 15 minutes and walked me down to Vice President for Academic Affairs David Moore’s office.” Moore was also interested and introduced Beasley to the athletic director and head of the physical education department. Beasley put together a syllabus and was ready for business within a few months. Thinking that he was lucky to be hired as an instructor and have one karate class to teach during spring semester, Beasley was surprised when Moore called him on registration day and asked if he could teach two courses. Registration opened in the morning and the first class was full within a couple of hours. “That day I knew that I would still be here 30 years later,” says Beasley.

The Christiansburg native earned his first black belt in 1971 at 20 years old and later earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from Virginia Tech. He has written five books, 110 articles and is featured in a martial arts video distributed worldwide. Beasley is a regular contributor to martial arts magazines such as Black Belt and was inducted into Black Belt Hall of Fame as the 2000 Instructor of the Year. He is featured on the cover of several magazines including Black Belt and a martial arts publication in Iran. He is now a 9th degree black belt and a leading expert and consultant in the field.

And it appeals to students. It’s difficult to enroll in his classes because they fill up quickly. In four years at RU, students can attain a black belt along with a bachelor’s degree. Several of Beasley’s students have been pictured on the cover of various martial arts magazines. Graduates from the martial arts option have been hired by the FBI, started their own karate schools or fitness clubs and became high school teachers.

Beasley has definitely put himself and RU on the map. His Karate College martial arts summer camp on campus brings in about 400 people from across the country and Asia, Europe, South America and Canada. Karate champions and world-renowned instructors such as Joe Lewis, Bill Wallace, Michael DePasquale and Renzo Gracie provide workshops and seminars in all areas of martial arts.

Beasley has helped set up a Middle East project to give orphans an opportunity to learn martial arts. “Martial arts instruction is good for children,” he says. “It teaches discipline and respect. Those students who don’t get any respect except in gangs are able to get respect in inner city karate programs.”

Beasley’s describes his martial arts program as “multicultural” and says it combines self-defense styles and theories from the Philippines, China, Japan and Korea and promotes understanding of technique within a cultural context.

Martial arts is Beasley’s passion, and it’s also his service. “I want to take away stress or anxiety in a situation of conflict or violence. I knew from the beginning that there would always be a need for that concept of self-defense,” says Beasley. “That is my service – to give victims some self confidence.”