School Policy

Rules, Regulations and General Requirements

Required Conduct In & Out of the Do Jang

1. Before you enter or leave the do jang, you are required to execute a bow of respect to the flags.
2. Execute a bow of courtesy upon meeting your instructor or a ranking black belt. How to bow: Stand at attention, head up, shoulders down, back straight, and relax. Hands are held open at the side of the body. Bend head about 45- degree angle and waist about 15-degree angle. Eyes are on your opponent. However, in sparring, your eyes are kept on your opponent's midsection. Be respectful and bow when confronted with another anytime/anyplace.
3. Remove shoes upon entering the school and place neatly in the shoe cubbies in the lobby before entering the do jang.
4. Respect other people's property and belongings.
5. The dobok must be always be neat and clean (odor free), with patches in proper placement (See handbook). Specified T-shirts may be worn as your uniform top during class, but a full dobok must be worn for tests and demos.
6. Always practice good personal hygiene habits. Also keep your fingernails and toenails trimmed.
7. Remove all jewelry before entering class.
8. Respect the class that is in session. Lower the volume of your conversation. Remain off the teaching area until your class begins. Quietly prepare for your class.
9. Before starting class you are to pull your student card and have it ready to give the instructor upon entering the do jang.
10. Enter class with energy and demonstrate your enthusiasm for learning. Practice should be vigorous; however, inform your instructor if you become fatigued.
11. Strict attention is to be given to the instructor at all times.
12. No vulgarities or obscene language is allowed. Loss of temper, loud laughing and talking, horseplay, or any display of a lack of self-discipline will not be tolerated in class.
13. No gum chewing, smoking, food or liquid, lounging against the walls or on the floor will be allowed in the do jang.
14. All students should be on time for class and practice caution at all times in class. If you arrive late for class, you must first get permission from the instructor who is teaching the class by making eye contact with them. A nod from the instructor will serve as your permission to enter the do jang. If you must leave the class, you must also get permission from the instructor to leave and then permission to return again.
15. Steady and consistent attendance is essential to progress. A current schedule can be found on our website here. Please notify your instructor if you will be missing class.
16. Your belt must be tied properly. Never wrap your belt around your neck, drag it on the floor, or handle your belt in any manner that displays disrespect. The belt should never be washed, due to ancient philosophy; the original white belt, with continued hard practice, eventually darkens, deeper and deeper until eventually it turns black. How to tie your belt: Fold your belt in half. Place the center of the belt inline with your belly button. Wrap both ends around behind you and bring them to the front. (Hold the ends out in front of you to make sure they are the same distance from your abdomen.) Fold the right end over the left end and bring it up behind both layers of the belt before folding the right end over the left end again. Pull both ends to tighten the knot. Both ends should be even. (If you start with the label on the left it should end up on the left.) Stripes/tape should be worn on your left - once you become a black belt stripes are worn on your right. Black belts are also tied differently. (Your instructor will show you how this is done.)
17. Stand at attention when speaking to your instructor or when your instructor is speaking to you.
18. Check the school bulletin boards and calendar in the waiting room and in the hall entrance into the do jang for any notices.
19. Students must turn in their testing form and fee on or before the deadline (The deadline is posted on the bottom of your test qualification form. No applications will be accepted after the given due date. No exceptions.) Your test qualification form will be passed out at the end of class. If you decide not to test, please advise us as soon as possible.
20. Tuition payments must be current in order to test.
21. Students should practice only those forms, which have been presented to them by the instructor. They should not try to skip ahead by observing higher ranks.
22. Free sparring is not allowed without permission from the instructor. In free sparring, there will be no contact to the head, face, neck or groin. It is mandatory for all equipment to be worn during sparring.
23. Techniques taught in class are not to be applied out of the do jang unless circumstances involving your safety, or the safety of others are overriding. You should always avoid or walk away from a situation whenever possible. This makes you the better person.
24. During the class, the sound of clapping hands will indicate that activity is to cease immediately.
25. Every student is subject to the school's rules and regulations. Non-compliance will result in the following penalties: warnings, denial of permission to test, belt taken away.
26. The do jang is the responsibility of the students. Keep it clean and neat.
27. If there is inclement weather, call Chesapeake Martial Arts to see whether or not classes will be held that day. There will be a recorded message on the answering machine.
28. To maintain do jang etiquette, while exercising/stretching are being taught, all students should all go in the same direction. (e.g. all left leg out, all right leg out, etc.)
29. Students 17 years of age or younger are required to bring in their report card quarterly during the school year in order to be eligible for the "academic achiever award" and star patches.