Michael L. Burnett, SaJooNim has been involved in martial arts nearly all of his life. His father James Burnett, Sensei(1st Dan, Shotokan Karate-do) started a martial arts school in Ogallala, NE, in 1971 with Mr. Chuck Beckius (1st Gup, Tae-Kwon-Do). Soon after, they met Lee Kun-Man YoonSaNim (6th Dan). Lee YoonSaNim accepted the Ogallala school under his guidance and eventually, Burnett Sensei was promoted to the rank of 1st Dan in Tae-Kwon-Do (and given the title SunSaengNim) and became the first black belt student of Lee YoonSaNim in the United States. Burnett SaJooNim developed an interest in martial arts as a young child, after being allowed to watch as his sister participated in, and, as his father was instructing Tae-Kwon-Do classes in Ogallala. Burnett SaJooNim began training in Tae-Kwon-Do at the age of eight under the direction of Lee YoonSaNim and his father, Burnett SunSaengNim. Through persistence and patience, Burnett SaJooNim became the first student of Lee YoonSaNim ever to have earned the rank of 4th Degree Black Belt, and was certified at this level in July of 1992 by the American Association of Korean Martial Art.

During SaJooNim Burnett's years of training in, and teaching Tae-Kwon-Do, he regularly competed in martial arts tournaments around the U.S., and ultimately amassed fourteen Grand Championship wins - five in kyorugi (sparring) competition, and nine in hyung (forms) competition. This includes a consecutive four year reign (1991-1995) as Forms Grand Champion at the Mid-Platte Valley Tae-Kwon-Do Championship in Cozad, Nebraska.

Soon after earning his black belt in Tae-kwon-Do, Burnett SaJooNim began training in Hapkido under the guidance of Lee YoonSaNim - and has since trained with several other instructors, not the least of which include Hapkido's Founder, Ji Han-Jae (10 Dan), Myung kwang-Sik (10th Dan), Yi Jun-Suh (8th Dan), and Chad Zwieg (6th Dan). Most recently, Burnett SaJooNim was promoted to the rank of Oh Dan (5th Degree) in Hapkido, and assigned the title SaJooNim (Master Instructor) by the International Kido Federation in Kwangju, South Korea. Burnett SaJooNim was honored for his promotion in a special ceremony held in Los Angeles, California. He is the youngest Master Instructor ever in the IKF, and only the sixth non-Asian to be assigned to this position by the International Kido Federation.

Burnett SaJooNim has received instruction on many Martial Arts related subjects through a continuing participatioon in seminars and clinics presented by the International Martial Arts Management InstituteTM. Instruction on subjects ranging from Acupressure to Adolescent Abuse Avoidance to being certified as an Instructor Trainer for the Persuader Baton, has been completed through the Institute.

Burnett SaJooNim is determined to continue to train in martial arts and to strive for an excellence in technique and an expansion of wisdom and knowledge which he can pass along to his own students. Thus, hopefully allowing them to experience the happiness and fulfillment that can be realized through a high degree of harmony between mind and body consummated in an activity such as the study of Hapkido.

It is the desire of Burnett SaJooNim to preserve the integrity, ethics, and traditions of his teachers through his gift of instruction and knowledge to his own students.