Our Instructors & Staff Members

Our Instructors have spent many years devoted to training in the art of Tang Soo Do and other martial arts and have attained a certain level of expertise to qualify them as teachers and also mentors.

Through extensive testing, certification and tournament level competition, our staff has attained mastery in this martial art and now enjoy sharing their skill and passing it on to their students.

Here are a few of Jacob Flame's Tang Soo Do University's instructors and other staff members, starting with Master Jacob Flame:

Master Jacob Flame  (5th Degree Black Belt/ Chief Instructor)  Master Jacob Flame has numerous credentials and accomplishments. We will be updating this section shortly to detail them.

Kinsie Flame  (2nd Degree Black Belt)  Mrs. Kinsie Flame began training with Master Jacob Flame in January of 2005. She has a Bachelors Degree in History. Mrs. Flame has an educational background in Child Development with five years of toddler, pre-school and school age experience. Mrs. Flame enjoys teaching satellite programs, assisting with classes at the studio and working in the office.

Suzie Cooper  (Demo Team Mom/ Instructor) My name is Suzie Cooper and I earned my 1st Dan black belt when I was 12 and was named one of the youngest female black belts in California. I decided at that time that I wanted to move away from karate and pursue other sports. It wasn’t until my son Davis was 3 years old and taking karate classes with Master Flame that I was reintroduced to my love of martial arts. I have been training at TSDU ever since (about 7 years now) and recently earned my 2nd Dan black belt. I am a 2nd grade teacher at Sycamore Canyon School in Newbury Park and a mom to Davis (10) and Mason (8). My husband, Jeff owns his own physical therapy clinic in Newbury Park and is also a black belt at TSDU. Between work, school, karate, and spending time with our family and friends we are very busy, but wouldn’t have it any other way! I feel very fortunate to be able to train in the same sport as my husband and kids – we will forever have the unique bond of martial arts to bring us together!

Rachel Handelsman  (Demo Team Captain/ Instructor) Ms. Rachel Handelsman is a 2nd degree Black Belt who has been training with Master Jacob Flame since 2004 when she started his program at Pinecrest Thousand Oaks. Along with teaching on the mat, assisting with Demo Team, and training with her karate friends at TSDU, Ms. Handelsman also trains in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to round out her martial arts skills. As a junior at Thousand Oaks High School, Ms. Handelsman is also active in the Dance program and Link Crew Mentor program. Outside interests include reading, skin diving, and baking.

Michele Handelsman  (Demo Team Mom/Instructor) Mrs. Michele Handelsman has been training in Tang Soo Do karate with Master Jacob Flame since 2005 and earned her 1st degree Black Belt in 2009. Mrs. Handelsman, her husband, Gordon, and their children, Rachel and Tomas are transplanted Canadians who happily adopted California as their home since 2001. As part of the TSDU Thousand Oaks studio, Mrs. Handelsman feels very fortunate to be able to share a common activity training with her children as well as a great karate family. When not training or assisting on the mat, Mrs. Handelsman is an instructor in the Life Sciences department at Moorpark College where she teaches microbiology and biology. Outside interests include knitting, reading, and tennis.

Jeff Cooper  (Instructor) Jeff Cooper has numerous credentials and accomplishments. We will be updating this section shortly to detail them.

Ashish Spencer  (Instructor) Mr. Ashish Spencer Began his Martial Arts training in 1992 under Sifu Mark Moy in Washington State. Mr. Ash began training with Master Flame in April of 2009. Mr. Ash has been a Nationally registered Emergency Medical Technician for 5 years and is currently awaiting admission into Ventura County Fire Department.

Christian Stolp  (Instructor) Christian Stolp has numerous credentials and accomplishments. We will be updating this section shortly to detail them.

For more information about the Jacob Flame's Tang Soo Do University staff or training programs, please contact us at (805) 376-0604 or by clicking here.