Why Join the AJA?

The American Jujitsu Association offers students and senseis a remarkable array of benefits, including but not limited to the following:

• The AJA is a national organization dedicated to furthering the art of jujitsu, which means that it includes traditional Japanese dojos and modern styles that may involve amateur competition in various formats. In addition, the AJA is closely allied with a number of international martial arts organizations that work closely with one another to advance the Art.

• AJA certifies the promotions you make, and the promotions are recognized by all other AJA dojos, as well as internationally. This means that a student can move from one AJA dojo to another without losing rank. It also provides nationally recognized certification that enables your black belts to teach at other dojos or set up their own dojos. This helps you grow the art by creating “daughter schools” of your own.

• AJA dojo membership provides insurance coverage – liability insurance for you, your instructors, and your dojo, as well as secondary medical insurance for your students in case of an in-class injury. To be eligible for the insurance, all students in your dojo must be registered as AJA members, and concussion training is required for all instructors. This training can be obtained for free online

• The AJA is a low-cost, high benefit organization. The annual registration fee for dojos is just $25, and for individual members it is $20. The first-year of dojo registration is free. AJA certification of mudansha promotions costs just $8; shodan and nidan certifications are $15; and sandan and above are $20. The many benefits are outlined here.

• The AJA maintains an efficient website, with one-stop shopping for you to gather information, register students, renew your dojo registration, and order promotion certificates. Payment can be made with a credit card through PayPal, or by check if you choose. On this website you can maintain student ranks and email addresses.

• The AJA offers steep discounts on gi’s, belts, and other martial arts equipment.

• The AJA offers FREE black belts to all registered AJA students who earn their shodan rank under you as a sensei. Each belt is embroidered with the student’s name on one end and “American Jujitsu Association” on the other.

• AJA sponsors jujitsu seminars and competitions each year. Each region holds one of these events (shiais) annually, as do other AJA dojos.

• Budoshin Yudanshakai, the dojo of AJA founder George Kirby, hosts an annual 3-day summer camp in Los Angeles in August for brown belts and black belts, as well as a Camp Budoshin gathering every October for ALL styles of martial arts, where high-level leaders in other martial arts (for example, Karate, Judo, Aikido, Sombo, Taiho-Jutsu) come to teach seminars.

• The AJA provides national awards for you, your school, and your students, administered through regional directors.

• AJA members receive an up-to-date quarterly newsletter listing national and regional events and discussing aspects of teaching martial arts that will be very helpful to you as a sensei. This newsletter will also list all of your own school’s AJA-certified promotions for a national audience to see.