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KEITH D. YATES started his martial arts training in 1965 and became one of the youngest black belts in the country when he earned his rank at 17 from former International Champion Allen R. Steen. Mr. Yates established a reputation as one of the top kata champions in the Southwest, including winning the famous Texas State Championships in 1971.
He has trained with a number of other famous martial arts masters, most notably Skipper Mullins and Jhoon Rhee. He has also has earned black belts in Japanese Ju-Jitsu and Okinawan Kobudo. A prolific writer and well-respected teacher, he currently holds the tenth degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do (one of the few non-asians to hold such a high ranking).
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Painting of Mr. Yates by Ed Parker, Jr., 2010
• Mr. Yates is Founder and president of the American Karate And Tae Kwon Do Organization
• Began the very first college "karate for credit" program in the Southwest in 1972 at Southern Methodist University (see photo gallery). Mr. Yates served as an adjunct professor at SMU for seven years in both the Physical Education and Communications Departments.
• Voted into the 1992 edition of "Who's Who in the South and Southwest," a honor that goes with his place in the Third Edition of "Who's Who in American Martial Arts."
• In 1997 he was a part of the inaugural class of inductees into the Texas Martial Arts Hall of Fame in Waco (see photo gallery) along with other notables such as Chuck Norris, Jhoon Rhee, Pat Burleson, Allen Steen, Ray McCallum, Demetrius Havanas and Troy Dorsey.
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• Along with Joe Lewis, Bill Wallace and Jhoon Rhee, Mr. Yates was invited to be in the first class of Nationally Certified Instructors of the American Council on Martial Arts (ACMA) in association with the Cooper Institute (see photo gallery).
