Our Instructors & Staff Members

Our Instructors have spent many years devoted to training in the art of Kenpo 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 on-going instruction, our staff has attained mastery in this martial art and now enjoy sharing their skill and passing it on to their students.

David DeCarlucci  (Blue Belt) Mr. DeCarlucci is an extremely talented and sought after exercise physiologist trained at both Penn State University and the University of Pittsburgh. He has been working in wellness and rehabilitation for over 11 years. His passions for health and fitness led him to PKA in 1999 and he now has yet another true passion in the martial arts and Kenpo within the LTKKA which is unlike anything being done, especially in Pittsburgh. Mr. DeCarlucci hopes to continue to train, remain a student, improve, and share with others for years to come. You may see him running in the South Hills because that is his main form of transportation to work and sometimes to PKA. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons.

Khom Long  (Blue Belt) Ms. Long began her training at PKA a little over three years ago. Infact, her two children, were training for almost a year before she decided to get off the chairs and "give Kenpo a try." Of course, the rest is history. Ms. Long is now helping out by teaching in many classes. She is also a very valuable asset with her professional skills as a manager/trainer for a major corporation outside of PKA in meeting and talking with all of our students, parents and children at the school. She is very focused and goal oriented when on the mat, whether it's dealing with her children's goals, her personal goals or helping others achieve their goals. When not training, Ms. Long loves spending time doing just about anything with her children, especially at the library, just reading in general, time at the park, cooking and shopping at the specialty food shops at the strip district downtown.

Robert Metz  (1st Degree Brown) “Sergeant Major” Metz is the former Senior TAC NCOIC of the U.S. Army Ranger School having more than 22 years military experience. SGM Metz was one of the founding fathers of the Army’s Gun Truck Alley initiative, which prepared Army reserve soldiers for Convoy Survivability Operations in light of lethal ambushes extant in Iraq and Afghanistan. Further, he has been interviewed by several media sources as a Subject Matter Expert in respect to the Improvised Explosive Devices, which are so prevalent in attacks against Coalition Forces deployed in the Middle East. SGM Metz's present duty is as the Operations Sergeant Major for a Division level Command. He is also a retired Homicide Detective with 11 years experience. As a police officer Mr. M had been certified as both a Pressure Point Control Tactics Instructor as well as a Close Quarters Combat Instructor. Mr. M earned his Brown Belt in Ryu-Kyu Kenpo in 1993 and is a Lakan Guro (1st Degree Black Belt) in the Filipino martial art of Kali-Silat having begun this training in 1997. Mr. M. has been professionally teaching soldiers, law enforcement officers and select civilians since 1982. His current martial focus includes, but is not limited to: hostile subject control tactics, plural assailant response platforms, edged-weapon / blunt force trauma instrument neutralizations and pressure point exploitations designed to enhance strikes at a geometric rate. Mr. M has been studying American Kenpo Karate since August 2003 and is a 1st Degree Brown Belt in the art. He joins Mr. O. in taking PKA to the next level in Kenpo as a Larry Tatum Kenpo Karate Association (LTKKA) Charter School. The LTKKA is one of the largest world-wide American Kenpo organizations in existence. Mr. M earned his BA from the University of Pittsburgh graduating Cum Laude at an accelerated time of only two and a half years. His graduate studies at Carnegie Mellon University were interrupted when he was mobilized for military service in 2003. Professionally, Mr. M is a Board Certified Myofascial Trigger Point Therapist with his own practice as well as employed by UPMC Passavant Hospital. Myofascial Trigger Point Therapy is a discipline that is a therapeutic modality used for the relief of pain and dysfunction originating in the muscles and connective tissue; "myo" means muscle and "fascial" refers to connective tissue. The goal of MTPT is recovery from, or a significant reduction in, pain and postural dysfunction. This is achieved through systematic and comprehensive use of a variety of soft tissue manipulation techniques. Mr. M currently is married and has four children. In his spare time he enjoys watching his favorite sports team- the Pittsburgh Steelers, ultimately becoming convinced that the blood in his veins is colored black and gold.

Michelle Muller  (Purple Belt) Mrs. Michelle began her martial arts training in the summer of 2006 as a kickboxing student at PKA. Thirsting for more knowledge and skill, she "began her Kenpo adventure" the first day of 2008. She has taken her training to the next level by becoming an assistant instructor with Mr. Metz in his classes, and quickly found that she learns just as much from the students as she teaches. Mrs. Michelle graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in sociology, a AS in Biology, and a minor in History. Currently she works as a Marketing Specialist for a local curriculum publisher in Pittsburgh. When not learning, teaching, or studying Kenpo, Mrs. Michelle is hunting, fishing, camping, or doing something outdoors. When not outdoors, she is fulfilling her passion of cooking something good in the kitchen.

Bonnie Rodgers  (1st Degree Black) Ms. Rodgers began her Martial Arts training in 1993 and achieved one of her milestone goals on November 22, 2003, that of Sho-Dan, 1st Degree Black. She has been a valued addition to the instructor core for many years, loved and respected by students and parents alike. Ms. Rodgers made history in the South Hills by becoming the first female Black Belt Instructor in the over 26 years of training that our school has been giving to the community in the South Hills. ----- That's truly History! Ms. Rodgers graduated with honors attaining a Master's in Nursing as Family Nurse Practitioner in 1998 and can be seen frequently in numerous emergency rooms throughout the city either “patching” people up or simply seeing patients. She has been to Europe and strives someday to make it to the Grand Canyon and also camp in the basin.

Carl Rychcik  (3rd Degree Brown) Mr. R first began studying martial arts at PKA in the mid 80s. After a long hiatus, he returned to the PKA family in 2004 to continue his training. He has an insatiable quest for knowledge and constantly strives to learn and improve his Kenpo. He has recently taken his training to the next level and now enjoys sharing his knowledge and love of martial arts with others as an instructor. Mr. R. is a true giver and fantastic role-model for students of all ages and ranks. Mr. R graduated with honors from Penn State University where he received a BA in economics. He then obtained his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh. He currently spends the majority of his waking hours practicing law in the Pittsburgh office of a large national law firm where he specializes in business litigation. When he is not doing Kenpo or fighting with other lawyers, Mr. R enjoys running, reading and watching DVDs. His favorite pastime, though, is spending time with his wife and two children, whom he considers to be his two greatest accomplishments in life. The PKA family is excited and honored to have Mr. R. as part of the CORE Leadership Team.

For more information about the PKA Karate Academy staff or training programs, please contact us at (412) 531-4411 or by clicking here.