Our Instructors

Joshua served his country as a US Army Airborne Ranger with the 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment. During his Ranger career, Josh deployed to Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom) where he conducted missions as a member of an assault team and Combat Search and Rescue Team. In 2010, Josh left the service and enrolled at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. It was during his time at the U of I that he discovered Gracie Barra Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. In 2013, shortly after graduating from the University of Illinois, Josh started his own Gracie Barra academy, Gracie Barra Champaign. In addition to being a BJJ Black Belt, Josh is a Level 8 Commando Krav Maga Core Instructor. Josh was drawn to Commando Krav Maga (CKM) because of its focus on hand-hand defense against attacks from weapons and multiple attackers. Josh believes the combination of BJJ and CKM creates an individual that can protect themselves and their loved ones from extreme threats. Beyond his Ranger and martial arts training, Josh is certified to teach Illinois Conceal Carry courses and has obtained multiple NRA instructor certifications and attends various shooting events and trainings to maintain and grow his skill set. After years of teaching hand-hand combat through BJJ and CKM, Josh saw the need to teach his students firearms training as well.  In 2019, he expanded his teachings to include weapons training and survival tactics. Land was purchased in Madison County Illinois, just 30 minutes from the Lambert International Airport, St. Louis, creating the Tactical Playground.  The Tactical Playground is being developed to accommodate a variety of shooting and outdoor adventure courses and events to benefit families and caregivers. The Tactical Playground will include an obstacle course, paintball fields, rappelling tower, tree house  camping and other family-friendly activities.