The StrongFirst instructor certifications and most other events are taught by the Teachers of Strength: Masters, Seniors, and Team Leaders. The head of the team is our Director of Education Brett Jones.
To use a martial arts analogy, the Team Leaders and the Seniors are, respectively, first and second degree “Black Belts.” The Masters are third degree—which makes them “Senseis”—and higher.
A Master runs an instructor certification at which students are broken up into teams of up to sixteen. A Team Leader is in charge of one such team; a Senior directs one or more teams. The latter are aided by assistant instructors.
This elite international cadre comes from diverse backgrounds: national team coaches, national champions, former military special operators, first responders, law enforcement officers, elite martial artists, national team doctors, and other high-end professionals.
In addition to teaching for our School of Strength, many of the Teachers offer coaching and consulting directly to the public.
- For a list of StrongFirst Certified Master Instructors, click here.
Name Location Tommy Blom Mölndal, Sweden Shaun Cairns Somerset West, South Africa Andrea U-Shi Chang Seattle, WA, United States Dr. Mark Cheng Diamond Bar, CA, United States Jon Engum Brainerd, MN, United States Michael Hartle Fort Wayne, IN, United States Zar Horton Albuquerque, NM, United States Brett Jones Pittsburgh, PA, United States Peter Lakatos Szentendre, Hungary Jeremy Layport Paso Robles, CA, United States Pavel Macek Prague, Czechia Jason Marshall Lubbock, TX, United States Alexey Senart Paris, France Karen Smith Mckinney, TX, United States Derek Toshner Fond Du Lac, WI, United States Fabio Zonin Isola Vicentina, Italy - For a list of StrongFirst Certified Senior Instructors, click here.
Name Location Claire Booth Marshchapel, United Kingdom Maggie Burrows Bozeman, MT, United States Victor Carrillo Heredia, Costa Rica Betsy Collie Durham, NC, United States Mira Gracia Portland, OR, United States Tony Gracia Portland, OR, United States Hector Gutierrez Jr. Corpus Christi, TX, United States John Heinz Ottsville, PA, United States Ronen Katz Even Yehuda, Israel Martine Kerr Angus, Canada Benjamin Mayer Israel Steve Milles New York, NY, United States Analisa Naldi Pacifica, CA, United States Michael Perry Chelmsford, MA, United States Guido Posante Palermo, Italy Tiago Proenca Porto Alegre, Brazil Prentiss Rhodes Scottsdale, AZ, United States Mike Sousa Modesto, CA, United States John Spezzano Los Angeles, CA, United States Andżelika Stefańska-Kowalik Kraków, Poland Cole Summers Winnipeg, Canada Yoana Teran San Diego, CA, United States Mike Torres Seattle, WA, United States Ryan Toshner Brookfield, WI, United States Dariusz Walus Zielona Gora, Poland Woochae Yoon Seoul, Korea, Republic Of - For a list of StrongFirst Certified Team Leader Instructors, click here.
Name Location Ferenc Acs Budapest, Hungary Osvaldo Aponte San Diego, CA, United States Raul Baca Playa Del Carmen, Mexico Alexei Bordas Berkeley, CA, United States Catherine Buck Stanwood, WA, United States Todd Cambio Exeter, NH, United States Anna Cannington Vancleave, MS, United States Anne Casstevens Salt Lake City, UT, United States Thomas Cerboneschi Paris, France Owen Chau Richmond, Canada Hyun Jin Choi Seoul, Korea, Republic Of Myren Constantine Fu Singapore, Singapore Eszter Cserhalmi Miskolc, Hungary Kevin Dea Narberth, PA, United States Luis Del Toro Oakland, CA, United States Ron Farrington Fairfield, NJ, United States Jordan Girardi São Paulo, Brazil Charlie Guendulain Puerto Morelos, Mexico Debbie Hayes Silver Creek, GA, United States Valerie Hedlund San Clemente, CA, United States Camila Hermoso Sao Paulo, Brazil Chris Hook Lava Hot Springs, ID, United States Alanna Kauffmann Winchester, MA, United States John Kenny Raheny, Ireland Louka Kurcer Pointe-Claire, Canada Piers Kwan Brisbane, Australia Scott Macintosh Johannesburg, South Africa Justyna Macková Praha, Czechia Stefano Massa Napoli, Italy Noah Maxwell Havertown, PA, United States Granville Mayers Mississauga, Canada Reneta Music Mansfield, OH, United States Ricardo Nieves Sarasota, FL, United States Sasa Rajnovic Rijeka, Croatia Sven Rieger Stuttgart, Germany Pablo Camargo Neves Meza Sanchez Sao Paulo, Brazil Danny Sawaya Tucson, AZ, United States Timothy Shuman Orlando, FL, United States Melissa Templeman Oakland, CA, United States Antonin Tuma Praha 15, Czechia Vic Verdier Seattle, WA, United States Michael Wille Largo, FL, United States Brian Wright Leesburg, VA, United States Inkyoo Yoo Gyeonggi-Do, Korea, Republic Of Nicole Yu Taipei, Taiwan Jimmy Yuan Phoenix, AZ, United States Arianna Zaccagnini Brescia, Italy - For a list of the Emeriti, click here.
Name Rank Tim Almond Senior Emeritus Lance Coffel Senior Emeritus Gabi Katschthaler Senior Emeritus Craig Marker Senior Emeritus Gary Music Team Leader Emeritus Doug Nepodal Master Emeritus Mark Reifkind Master Emeritus Dustin Rippetoe Team Leader Emeritus Delaine Ross Senior Emeritus Joseph Sansalone Senior Emeritus Artemis Scantalides Team Leader Emeritus James Sjostrom Team Leader Emeritus Mark Snow Team Leader Emeritus Ervin Toth Team Leader Emeritus
