This spring, I registered for PE170, karate/tae kwon do, for one credit. I was expecting a fairly easy class, like tennis (PE159), and to get some good exercise and get in shape like swimming (PE101), both of which I had taken in earlier semesters.

I knew the instructor would be Master Yong Chin Pak and I knew that he was supposed to be a great teacher. What I didn’t know, as I do now after just three weeks, was that this is going to be the experience of a lifetime.

Master Pak is not just a great teacher of tae kwon do, he is a teacher of respect for others.

In his simple, earnest, yet humorous style, he conveys messages that would sound corny and worn out coming from other people, but seem simple, easy, and important for the real world. He teaches little things, such as treating your teachers with respect, affixing a “sir” or “ma’am” when responding at attendance, and smiling when you introduce yourself — not the stereotype of bowing every five minutes.

According to his profile on the Iowa State Karate Club website, Master Pak became a teacher at Iowa State in 1973, making this his 25th year at ISU. He teaches judo, hapkido, tae kwon do and karate and also helps as a consultant for many local law enforcement organizations.

He is also the coach of the tae kwon do team at Iowa State, which is among the most successful clubs in the nation, having won national championships as well as runner-up and third-place trophies.

He has received the coach of the year award from the National Collegiate Tae kwon do Association (NCTA) three times, as well as winning in-house recognition in the form of the Faculty Citation Award.

Master Pak was an Amoco Outstanding Teacher in 1983, and coached the United States team in the Pan-American Tae kwon do Championships and the Mexican and Ukrainian teams in the Goodwill Games.

He has been president of the NCTA since 1986.

I could go on like this for the whole column, but that is not the most important thing about Master Pak. It is that he has touched the lives of 25,000 people at ISU in his years here.

Either through his P.E. courses or his night classes and coaching, he has sent the equivalent of the entire ISU population into the world with a sense of respect for themselves and other people, not to mention imparting considerable self-defense skills.

In fact, many of them have continued on to become teachers themselves, and are continuing his traditions. He remarks that his favorite thing about teaching is “students learning and changing their lives through martial arts.”

One of his pupils is Dr. Amanda Clark, a Ph.D. in physics. Dr. Clark works in the Office of Intellectual Property at ISU and is a first degree black belt in hapkido, and a red belt in tae kwon do.

She thinks the best part of Master Pak’s teaching style is “the fact that he expects the best that we can do, and pushes us to deliver it.” Also, she notes that “the degree to which he incorporates the habits of offering and expecting respect from each other has provided a huge personal and professional growth mechanism for me.”

Master Pak says the teaching philosophy Clark is referring to is based on the five tenets: courtesy, perseverance, indomitable spirit, integrity and self-control. In addition, he stresses respect for others and self respect and self confidence.

Dr. Clark said she thinks Master Pak’s dedication is his best trait.

“He shows it to his students, to his family, and to the large martial arts community that he has built through the ISU program,” Dr. Clark said.

It is because of that dedication that we still have Master Pak here, since he could easily move away to the west or east coasts to make more money. He has many reasons for remaining in Ames.

“First, it was my job. Now, I’m established here, have my wife, kids, and 35 academies run by my students across the country. The program is getting strong and established, and people accept martial arts and the martial arts program in this area.”

Master Pak gives a mission statement for the Iowa State martial arts program: “Any of the ISU students who takes a P.E. course or evening course in martial arts will have a great benefit for the rest of their lives.”

Dr. Clark says it certainly has had a benefit for her. “Learning from Master Pak has been one of the most significant educational and personal development experiences of my life. I weigh it equivalent to the processes of obtaining my bachelor’s, master’s and Ph. D degrees.

“Because of learning from Master Pak, I have been able to develop the confidence to make a lot of career and personal decisions that I might have paled at prior to working with him. Some of these decisions have given me great satisfaction, and have created opportunities for me to help others.”

In every class, Master Pak gives us a break in the middle of class. During that break, he gives us an inspirational five-minute speech, like a football coach at halftime. Dr. Clark has experienced this as well, and it would be difficult to better describe it than she does.

“He gives short talks during practice sessions each night, and in spite of how many times I may have heard this or that topic from him, I can take away something new. He teaches us a lot more than how to do martial arts, he gives us mental and physical tools to create balance, confidence and general success in our lives.”

Thank you Master Pak, for providing Iowa State with a first class martial arts program. Thank you also for helping many thousands of students develop their lives and careers.

And last, but not least, thank you for what you have taught me so far. I hope to learn much more.