Even if you have a kid in middle school in Texas, the odds are good that you have never heard of the best program in Texas middle schools: Kickstart Kids, a martial arts program that replaces PE and teaches kids discipline, kindness, and focus.
Chuck Norris, yes, that Chuck Norris, decided that the lessons of martial arts were so powerful that they should be available to more youth. In 1990, with the help of then-President George H.W. Bush, Norris founded the Kickstart Kids program. In 1992, the program launched at four schools in Texas.
By 2019, there were more than 59 participating schools with over 9,500 students. While the program is a middle school program, students who complete the middle school program are invited to train after school with their instructors, and, if they do so, can actually complete their black belt training before graduating from high school.
So, if you know a kid who is struggling in middle school or who just needs the lessons of self-respect, discipline, and respect for others that a child can get by studying martial arts, then it is worth looking to see if Kickstart Kids is available at that child’s middle school.