The HISTORY of the Defense ARts Center
The United States Karate League was founded by Shihan Dean Pickard.
Shihan Ty Aponte named his first dojo the Defense Arts Center, with Karate as the dojo's main training program. The ultimate goal for the sake of diversity was to have multiple martial arts taught under one roof. The original DAC dojo, at 8173 Monte Vista in Upland, opened the summer after Sensei Ty graduated from high school in 1977. For the first year, Sensei Ty and students eager to have a place to call home were not concerned about training on a concrete floor.
Sparring between Jim Doiron and Dewie Lund, both brown belts at the time, on the cement floor of Sensei Ty's original DAC at the Monte Vista dojo (1977) .
In this photo, taken in 1978, Sensei Ty is teaching students who are training on carpeting. Over time, after enough carpet-burns, we eventually raised the funds to install hardwood flooring
Lineage of the USKL Dojos
Statewide Karate League
Founder SKL (now IKL)
Walter K. Nishioka
(Hombo Dojo – Honolulu Hawaii)
1963 – Present
Riverside, CA SKL
R.T. Nakano
R. Nakano 1965-67
F. Guzman 1967-68
M. Visser 1968-69
J. Pagliuso 1969-70
D. Pickard 1970-71
D. Krech 1971-72
Claremont USKL
D. Pickard
1974-75
New Riverside SKL
D. Krech / D. Pickard
1972-74
Hemet USKL
D. Pickard
1973-75
G. Bangle
1975-82
Moorpark College (USKL)
D. Pickard
1978-82
L.A. Mission College (USKL)
D. Pickard
1980-84
L.A. Pierce College (USKL*)
D. Pickard
1986-2004
Upland USKL*
873 (South) Monte Vista Dojo
T. Aponte
1977-99
Upland USKL*
Foothill Dojo
J. Augur / M. Whiteside
2000-02
1302 (North) Monte Vista Dojo
T. Aponte/J. Augur/M. Whiteside
2002-15
DAC: 1811 W. Foothill Dojo
T. Aponte/J. Augur
2016-18
DAC: 1842 W. 11th Street, Unit D
T. Aponte
2019-Present
Claremont Colleges (USKL)
D. Pickard
1976-82
Claremont Colleges (USKL*)
Physical Education Department
Pomona, Pitzer, Harvey Mudd,
Claremont McKenna, and Scripps Colleges
T. Aponte
1982-Present
University of Chicago (USKL*)
T. Reisz
1990-96
K. Nakamura / J. Straughn
1996-2000
University of La Verne (USKL*)
T. Aponte
2008-Present
* In 1994, USKL changed style from Shorin-Ryu to Shotokan.
