Wendy Rouse

I began training in martial arts when I was ten years old and earned a Shodan in Shotokan Karate. In college, I started training in Uechi-Ryu Karate, eventually earning a Yondan and Shihan certification. I taught courses in Karate and self-defense for students at the high school and at the university level.

Presently, I mostly dabble in various martial arts for fun and teach self-defense courses upon request. I work as a Professor of History specializing in LGBTQ+ history and the history of women. I have researched and written about the history of the women's self-defense movement including the book Her Own Hero: The Origins of the Women's Self-Defense Movement.