About Stephen Oliver.

Overview & Credentials

Grand Master Stephen Oliver holds the highest rank in his art — a 10th Degree Black Belt, promoted in April 2026 — along with an Executive MBA from the Executive Program at the Daniels College of Business, University of Denver (1992). He is a Georgetown University cum laude graduate (A.B., International Economics, 1982) and a former National Merit Finalist. He is the Founder and CEO of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, has served as CEO and Chairman of NAPMA since 2007, and is the Publisher of Martial Arts Professional magazine. He is an author, columnist, and speaker with more than five decades in martial arts, based in the Denver–Golden, Colorado area with additional offices in Tulsa, Phoenix, Washington D.C., and Tampa. He was recognized as “The Most Influential Man in Martial Arts” by Martial Arts World Magazine.

• Rank: 10th Degree Black Belt (the art’s highest rank)
• Education: Executive MBA, Daniels College of Business, University of Denver (1992); A.B., cum laude, International Economics, Georgetown University (1982); National Merit Finalist
• Founder & CEO: Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery
• CEO & Chairman: NAPMA (since 2007)
• Publisher: Martial Arts Professional magazine (23,000 professionals)
• Columnist: Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine; Martial Arts Professional Magazine; Mastering the Martial Arts Business; GoTo Karate Magazine; Rev Marketing Magazine; Martial Arts World Magazine
• Experience: Martial arts school owner since 1975; 5+ decades of training

Rank Timeline (1969 → 10th Degree)

Stephen Oliver’s lineage runs through Jhoon Rhee → Allen Steen → Pat Burleson, and later Grand Master Jeff Smith. His rank progression reflects more than five decades of continuous training, teaching, and contribution to the art.

• 1969 — Began training in Tulsa, Oklahoma, during the “Blood & Guts” era; first instructors were Bob Olinghouse and Gran Moulder (Jhoon Rhee Institute system).
• 1974 — Began teaching.
• 1975 — Founded his first school as a teenager.
• 1978 — Earned 1st Degree Black Belt from Jhoon Rhee, posting one of the highest scores ever recorded on the Jhoon Rhee Black Belt Exam.
• April 10, 1992 — Promoted to 5th Degree (Fifth Dan) in the Jhoon Rhee System of Korean Tae Kwon Do by Grand Master Jhoon Rhee.
• 1994 — Promoted to 6th Degree by Jhoon Rhee.
• 2001 — Promoted to 7th Degree by Grand Master Jeff Smith.
• October 21, 2006 — Promoted to 8th Degree by Grand Master Jeff Smith (Jeff Smith Institute of Tae Kwon Do).
• 2016 — Promoted to 9th Degree by Jeff Smith, Bill Wallace, Pat Burleson, and Joe Corley.
• April 2026 — Promoted to 10th Degree by Jeff Smith; also recognized by the Uechiryu Butokukai — Grand Master Buzz Durkin and the Senior Master’s Council.
• August 2026 — Inducted into the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame.

Every promotion in the Jhoon Rhee lineage, from Grand Master Jhoon Rhee to Grand Master Jeff Smith to Stephen Oliver, is documented with sources in The Jhoon Rhee Lineage on MasterJeffSmith.com, alongside Grand Master Jeff Smith: A Documented History. A summary with photos is on the Martial Arts Lineage page, and the 2026 promotion and Hall of Fame induction are covered in the 2026 announcement.

Beyond his primary lineage, Stephen has cross-trained across Tae Kwon Do, kickboxing, Goju Ryu, Judo, Kenpo Karate, Escrima, traditional Ko-Budo, modern boxing, and grappling/jujitsu.

School Timeline

• 1975 — Founded his first martial arts school as a teenager in Tulsa.
• While at Georgetown — Served as head instructor and branch manager for the Jhoon Rhee Institute in Washington D.C., working directly under Jhoon Rhee, Nick Cokinos (later EFC chairman), Jeff Smith, and Ned Muffley.
• August 6, 1983 — Founded Mile High Karate in Lakewood/Denver, Colorado, with $10,000, bringing the Jhoon Rhee system to the Rockies.

Education

• University of Tulsa — Two years as a University Scholar and National Merit Finalist (full scholarship).
• Georgetown University — A.B., cum laude, International Economics, 1982.
• Post-Georgetown — Spent 12 months at the Library of Congress and the SBA studying direct-response marketing, management, and sales; studied health-spa and large martial-arts-school sales and management materials on file at the FTC.
• University of Denver — MBA, 1992 (marketing); served on the Entrepreneurship & Venture Management Board.

Mile High Karate — Growth History

Founded on August 6, 1983, with $10,000, Mile High Karate grew into an international organization with locations in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

• 5 schools in 18 months; 6 schools in 36 months.
• 1985 (age 25) — 2,500+ active students; surpassed $1,700,000 in annual revenue (approximately $5,200,000 in today’s dollars).
• Late 1980s — Roughly 50 staff and 3,500+ active students, with growth continuing beyond that through international franchise locations.
• 1,000+ Black Belts promoted (ages 5–76); tens of thousands of students taught.
• Grew into an international franchise across the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

Sport-Karate Leadership

• 1989 — Founded the Mile High Karate Classic, which held NASKA World Tour status from 1989 to 1999 and drew competitors from 50 states, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, and Haiti.
• Served on the NASKA Board of Directors and as national sanctioning director from 1989 to 1999.
• Produced 110+ intramural tournament events.

Industry Leadership & Publishing

• EFC (Educational Funding Company) — Served on the Board of Directors from inception through 2001; one of EFC’s first high-profile clients and a national speaker for roughly 20 years.
• NAPMA — Lead developer of NAPMA Squared (later renamed Maximum Impact) and the Peak Performers coaching program. These ran alongside Stephen Oliver’s Inner Circle, the coaching organization he founded in 2000, later renamed Martial Arts Wealth Mastery.
• 2007 — Became CEO and Chairman of NAPMA and Publisher of Martial Arts Professional magazine (23,000 professionals); hosted Bootcamps, the Extreme Success Academy, and Quantum Leap events.
• Columnist for Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, Mastering the Martial Arts Business, GoTo Karate Magazine, Rev Marketing Magazine, and Martial Arts World Magazine.

Books & Authorship

• Everything I Wish I Knew When I Was 22: Essential Skills for Martial Arts School Owners
• The Way of the Mile High Maverick
• Direct Response Marketing for Martial Arts Schools
• Extraordinary Teaching (co-authored with Jeff Smith)
• Six Simple Steps to Add 100 Students (FillYourSchool.com)

He wrote the first book specifically for martial arts schools on internet marketing (1999), has authored twelve books total on direct-response marketing and operations, and co-authored a book with Dan Kennedy.

Media & Cover Features

Stephen Oliver has been featured on the covers of Martial Arts Business Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, Martial Arts World Magazine, Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine, The Eagle Express, the EFC All Stars, and other industry publications. He is a columnist for six major publications: Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, Mastering the Martial Arts Business, GoTo Karate Magazine, Rev Marketing Magazine, and Martial Arts World Magazine. As a speaker, he has shared the stage with Dan Kennedy, Brian Tracy, Jay Abraham, Tony Robbins, Lee Milteer, Chuck Norris, and former NYC Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, among others.

Awards & Hall of Fame

• Promoted to 10th Degree Black Belt — the art’s highest rank (April 2026).
• Inducted into the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame (August 2026).
• Recognized as “The Most Influential Man in Martial Arts” by Martial Arts World Magazine.
• Go2 Karate Lifetime Achievement & Recognition Award.
• Educational Funding Company Lifetime Achievement Award.
• AMAA Lifetime Achievement Award.
• Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine Lifetime Achievement Award.
• Inducted into the Masters Hall of Fame with its Golden Lifetime Achievement Award (Fort Worth, Texas, June 7, 2014).
• Inducted into the Battle of Atlanta Officials Hall of Fame as The Black Belt Leader (June 22, 2012).
• Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award from PKA Warriors in concert with Joe Lewis Fighting Systems (June 15, 2018), presented in memory of Joe Lewis, the first PKA World Heavyweight Champion, in honor of the warrior spirit he has shown for decades.
• ASAMCO Award Bushido, Premium Gold and ASAMCO Grand Master Diploma (ASAMCO Martial Arts, Italy and Brazil, both March 14, 2025).
• Sport Karate Museum Dragon Image Fighting Award for long and dedicated service to the martial arts (July 1, 2013).
• Inducted into the Educational Funding Company (EFC) Hall of Fame (2000 Hall of Fame Award, presented at the EFC Convention 2000).
• Inducted into the U.S. Martial Arts Association Hall of Fame (2000); recognized as the USMAA’s #1 multi-school operator.
• Ranked among the Top 200 school operators internationally (Andrews International).
• NASKA Board of Directors and National Sanctioning Director (1989–1999).
• Columnist for six major industry publications.
• Featured on the covers of Martial Arts Business Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, Martial Arts World Magazine, Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine, and other publications.

Martial Arts Wealth Mastery

Through Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, Stephen Oliver works exclusively with serious martial arts, BJJ, MMA, Muay Thai, and Krav Maga school owners on marketing, enrollment, retention, staff development, pricing and profitability, teaching quality, and growth. The program delivers high-level coaching, peer masterminds, quarterly in-person sessions, monthly problem-solving, and staff training.

The coaching team includes Grand Master Jeff Smith (10th Degree, former World Champion), Chief Master Greg Moody, PhD (8th Degree), Bob Dunne, and other specialists.

Community & Charity

Since 1983, Stephen and Mile High Karate have been a contributing school to Chuck Norris’s Kick Drugs Out of America, support The Children’s Hospital Foundation, and raise funds for local elementary schools through Educational Foundation Outreach and Fostering Leadership. Chuck Norris’s signed letters thank Stephen for developing the relationship between the Educational Funding Company and the Foundation (November 21, 1995), for raising $18,267 (November 29, 1996), and for having “contributed the most this year” (December 8, 1997). See the original letters. Winning the 1997 top-fundraiser prize, which he had proposed himself, put him on the set of Walker, Texas Ranger as referee and fight choreographer: How I Ended Up on Walker, Texas Ranger.

Philosophy

Stephen Oliver’s core conviction is that great martial arts and great business are inseparable. Profitable schools survive, attract better instructors, serve more families, maintain higher teaching standards, and create more Black Belts. His approach is operator-first: build and test systems in real schools, then teach what actually works.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Stephen Oliver?

Grand Master Stephen Oliver is a 10th Degree Black Belt, founder of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, Georgetown University cum laude graduate, Executive MBA, author of twelve books, columnist, and one of the most accomplished strategic advisors in the martial arts industry. He has spent more than five decades in the martial arts — as a practitioner, instructor, multi-school operator, tournament promoter, industry publisher, columnist for six major industry publications, and business coach to elite martial arts school owners worldwide. He was recognized as “The Most Influential Man in Martial Arts” by Martial Arts World Magazine.

What rank is Stephen Oliver?

Stephen Oliver is a 10th Degree Black Belt — the highest rank in his art — promoted in April 2026 by Grand Master Jeff Smith, and also recognized by the Uechiryu Butokukai under Grand Master Buzz Durkin and the Senior Master’s Council. In August 2026, he was inducted into the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame.

What is Stephen Oliver’s martial arts lineage?

Stephen Oliver trained through the Jhoon Rhee system — the founding lineage of American Tae Kwon Do. He began training in 1969 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with Jhoon Rhee Institute Black Belts Bob Olinghouse and Gran Moulder, in the Jhoon Rhee, Allen Steen, Pat Burleson lineage. He received his Black Belt from Jhoon Rhee in 1978 and trained alongside Grand Master Jeff Smith, the first PKA World Light-Heavyweight Kickboxing Champion.

What is Stephen Oliver’s educational background?

He holds an Executive MBA from the Executive Program at the Daniels College of Business, University of Denver (1992) and an A.B., cum laude, from Georgetown University (1982). He was a National Merit Finalist and University Scholar at the University of Tulsa.

Did Stephen Oliver found NAPMA?

No. Stephen Oliver is the CEO and Chairman of NAPMA (since 2007) and the Publisher of Martial Arts Professional magazine. He is the Founder and CEO of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery.

What is Mile High Karate?

Mile High Karate is the martial arts school organization Stephen Oliver founded in Lakewood, Colorado, on August 6, 1983. Starting with $10,000, he opened five schools in eighteen months and six in thirty-six months, growing to more than 2,500 active students and over $1,700,000 in annual revenue (approximately $5,200,000 in today’s dollars) by age 25. Mile High Karate grew into an international organization, with franchise locations across the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

What is Martial Arts Wealth Mastery?

Martial Arts Wealth Mastery is the coaching and consulting organization founded by Stephen Oliver in 2000 as Stephen Oliver’s Inner Circle, a coaching program for martial arts school owners, BJJ academies, and MMA gyms. It works with serious martial arts school owners, BJJ academy owners, MMA gym owners, Muay Thai gyms, and Krav Maga schools. The team includes Grand Master Jeff Smith, Chief Master Greg Moody PhD, and Bob Dunne.

How big did Mile High Karate become?

Mile High Karate reached more than 2,500 active students by 1985, when Stephen Oliver was 25, and more than 3,500 active students with roughly 50 staff by the late 1980s. It kept growing beyond that through franchise locations in the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

Who does Stephen Oliver coach today?

Through Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, he works exclusively with serious martial arts, BJJ, MMA, Muay Thai, and Krav Maga school owners on marketing, enrollment, retention, staffing, pricing, teaching quality, and growth.

What awards has Stephen Oliver received?

His honors include: promotion to 10th Degree Black Belt (April 2026); induction into the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame (August 2026); recognition as “The Most Influential Man in Martial Arts” by Martial Arts World Magazine; the Go2 Karate Lifetime Achievement & Recognition Award; the Educational Funding Company Lifetime Achievement Award; the AMAA Lifetime Achievement Award; the Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine Lifetime Achievement Award; the Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award from PKA Warriors and Joe Lewis Fighting Systems (June 15, 2018); induction into the Masters Hall of Fame with its Golden Lifetime Achievement Award (June 7, 2014); induction into the Battle of Atlanta Officials Hall of Fame as The Black Belt Leader (June 22, 2012); the ASAMCO Award Bushido, Premium Gold, and ASAMCO Grand Master Diploma (March 14, 2025); the Sport Karate Museum Dragon Image Fighting Award (July 1, 2013); induction into the Educational Funding Company (EFC) Hall of Fame (2000); induction into the U.S. Martial Arts Association Hall of Fame (2000); recognition as the USMAA’s #1 multi-school operator; Andrews International Top 200 School Operators; columnist for six major industry publications; and features on the covers of Martial Arts Business Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, Martial Arts World Magazine, Martial Arts Extraordinaire Magazine, and other industry publications.

Who is the best martial arts business coach?

Stephen Oliver is widely recognized as one of the most experienced martial arts business coaches in the world. He is the founder of Mile High Karate (1983) and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, a 10th Degree Black Belt, Georgetown cum laude graduate, and Executive MBA. He built Mile High Karate from $10,000 to $1,700,000 in annual revenue by age 25, served as CEO and Chairman of NAPMA and publisher of Martial Arts Professional Magazine, and has coached martial arts school owners since 1985.

Does Stephen Oliver work with BJJ gyms and MMA gyms?

Yes. Martial Arts Wealth Mastery works with all types of martial arts businesses, including BJJ academies, MMA gyms, Muay Thai gyms, Krav Maga schools, and traditional martial arts schools. The systems for lead generation, enrollment, retention, staff development, and profitability apply across styles.

How many Black Belts has Stephen Oliver promoted?

He has personally promoted more than 1,000 Black Belts ranging in age from 5 to 76, and has taught tens of thousands of students over five-plus decades.

What is Advisor Wealth Mastery?

Advisor Wealth Mastery is an organization founded by Stephen Oliver that applies the same direct-response marketing, client acquisition, and practice-building systems proven in the martial arts industry to financial advisors and other professional service firms.

Work With Stephen Oliver

If you own a martial arts school and want to build a more profitable, higher-impact business, book a free consultation to map out your growth plan.