Nicole Tsao
Nicole Tsao Sensei ⋙ Sandan (3rd degree black belt)
Nicole Tsao has been training at Aikido of Santa Cruz since 2002. She received her third degree black belt from Linda Holiday Sensei and Glen Kimoto Sensei in 2017. Her joy in Aikido practice encourages others to train, and she loves to support beginning students.
Nicole is an educator by profession and has taught mathematics, science, and Chinese language in local schools for many years. She explains how her career in education led her to begin Aikido training: "I started Aikido when I worked at a charter school in the San Lorenzo Valley. I had returned to teaching after working as an administrator at UC Irvine for 4 years and 2 years in the Peace Corps in Nepal. I needed something to sustain my spirit while working with a challenging group of students. I realized that Aikido is a calling as teaching is to me, and I answered the call."