Boulder Kodokan, a non-profit organization registered with the State of Colorado, was founded in 1995 by Paul and Barbara Gehring. Boulder Kodokan started by offering kids classes through the Boulder County Board of Education Lifelong Learning program. This generated enough interest in the parents of the children to start an adult class, which continued after the Lifelong Learning program was shut down in 1998. After several years of going from school gym to school gym in the Lifelong Learning program, Boulder Kodokan settled down at the dome at Mapleton and Folsom. This would be home until the summer of 2004, when the building was scheduled to be torn down. This turn of events made it possible for Boulder Kodokan to find a new home in PreEminence Hall at 3213 Walnut. While functional with a 1400 sq ft sprung hardwood floor, the space was far from having the feel of a traditional dojo when Paul and Barbara signed the lease for it in July of 2004. With the help of many students and friends, and practically all of Paul and Barbara’s free time until March of 2005, the space was transformed into the Asian movement arts studio that Boulder Kodokan called home until October of 2016. On October 1st of 2016 Boulder Kodokan changed its name to Iwa Dojo and moved from Boulder to the Crescent Grange in Broomfield.

Boulder Kodokan was founded by Paul and Barbara Sensei for a very simple reason; they wanted other people to train with. They have been blessed over the years with students that had the dedication to train to the level of black belt, providing them with not just people to train with, but wonderful people to learn from as well. We place a premium on the ambiance created by having a smaller non-commercial club that provides students with personal attention from senior students. One of our club mottos is, “Train Hard, Train Often”, and that we do. But it’s a great deal of fun in a very supportive, constructive atmosphere. Our vision for Boulder Kodokan is to build it into a successful non-profit that provides not just community support through activities, but is able to contribute financially to local and international charities.