Joseph (Joe) Monroe

Black Belt since 2019 | U.S. Navy Veteran | Father | Founder of Lycan Jiu Jitsu

Joe’s Jiu Jitsu journey started back in 2007 when, by chance, he agreed to go with a buddy to try out a Jiu Jitsu class. After being submitted more times than he could count, Joe decided he would sign up for classes. 

Since then, Joe has competed and won local Jiu Jitsu tournaments. Joe was promoted to Black Belt as a member of Elite Team Eastbay, by Head Instructor Tom Knox. He is currently under Bryant Pangelinan Head Instructor of Sabre Jiu Jitsu in Concord.

Joe coached at Pacific Ring Sports starting in 2021, rebuilding the program after the COVID shut downs. He impressed students with his patience and positive attitude, regardless of their skill level. Joe’s goal during a Jiu Jitsu class is to help students build confidence, get in shape, and learn self-defense in a team atmosphere using the principles of Jiu Jitsu. 

Lineage of Belts

Lineage to Black Belt:
Mitsuyo Meada → Carlos Gracie Sr → Helio Gracie → Royler Gracie → Cleber Luciano → Tom Knox → Joseph Monroe

Lineage to Brown Belt:
Helio Gracie → Rickson → Luiz Claudio → Augusto → Thiago Veiga → Joseph Monroe

Kenneth (Ken) Kim

Brown Belt | Former Elite Level Powerlifter | Father

Ken is a Jiu Jitsu instructor at Lycan Jiu Jitsu. Ken’s Jiu Jitsu journey started in 2012,
where coincidentally, he met Joe Monroe. Joe was a blue belt at the time and from that
day until now, Joe uses his smooth movement and solid technique to give Ken a hard
time on the mats! From the start, Ken was bitten by the Jiu Jitsu bug. His fascination
with learning technique(s) and desire to understand how the mechanics of body
position, weight distribution, and movement efficiency play into effective Jiu Jitsu has
ultimately led him to this opportunity where he gets to teach the beautiful art that he has
obsessed about since 2012.

As a former competitive powerlifter with elite totals in 2 weight classes, he also
possesses knowledge in strength and conditioning. While he has sustained a few
injuries over the past 2 decades, he fully attributes that base of strength in keeping his
body capable of training on the mats. If you have general strength/exercise questions or
maybe you’re trying to recover from an injury, feel free to ask!

Ken’s full-time job involves gene regulation/editing, specifically in the field of CNS
diseases i.e. Parkinson’s and ALS. In addition, he has made significant contributions in
the field of HIV/AIDS and Cell Therapy (T-regulatory cells). His 25 year employment at
Sangamo Therapeutics was his first and only job upon completing his B.S. degree in
Nutritional Sciences at U.C. Berkeley.

Ken was promoted from white to purple belt (2012 - 2019) under former instructor(s)
Adam Lowry and Tom Knox as a member of Elite Team Eastbay. He was then promoted
to brown belt in 2023 by Joe Monroe.

Lineage of Belts

Lineage to Brown Belt:
Mitsuyo Maeda – Carlos Gracie Sr. – Helio Gracie – Royler Gracie – Cleber Luciano –
Tom Knox – Joseph Monroe