We travel...

SafeSkills® travels throughout the Southeast to teach our programs. Contact us to bring us to your site.

About SafeSkills ®


Founded in 1990, SafeSkills® became the North Carolina's first business devoted exclusively to teaching people appropriate and effective personal safety programs. Our self-defense and workplace violence prevention programs are taught on-site at businesses, agencies and colleges throughout the Southeast. Our martial arts classes are held daily at the SafeSkills® Training Center in Durham.


Founders Kathy Hopwood and Beth Seigler have been teaching physical and psychological self-protection and violence prevention programs for over 25 years. They are the instructors for all the SafeSkills® self-defense programs as well as the head instructors for the martial arts classes.

Beth Seigler

Beth Seigler Ms. Seigler, President of SafeSkills®, Inc. has taught at conferences nationally and is experienced working with assault survivors. She has held or currently holds membership in the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault, American Society of Training and Development, National Coalition Against Sexual Assault, National Women’s Martial Arts Federation, and American Women’s Self-Defense Association.

Ms. Seigler has been training in martial arts and self-defense since 1979. Her martial arts training includes the styles of Cuong Nhu, Shorin-Ryu Kobayashi Karate, Aikido and Modern Arnis. She is the Chief Black Belt Instructor of the SafeSkills® Martial Arts classes.

Kathy Hopwood

Kathy Hopwood Ms. Hopwood has 30 years experience in teaching psychological and physical self-protection. She is nationally recognized for her leadership in the development of crime and violence prevention programs and has served on the Self-Defense Task Force of the National Coalition Against Sexual Assault and the National Women’s Martial Arts Federation Board of Directors. She has written extensively about the issues of sexual assault and self-defense.

Ms. Hopwood began her martial arts training in 1972, a time when women in the martial arts were considered unusual. She is considered a pioneer in the martial arts and self-defense field. She has trained in a multitude of martial arts styles including Tae Kwon Do- Chi Do Kwan, Shorin-Ryu Kobayashi Karate, Modern Arnis, and Hung-Gar Kung-Fu. She is the Head Black Belt Instructor of the SafeSkills® Martial Arts classes.


Previous clients of SafeSkills® Corporate Programs include: Duke University, Family Care of West Virginia, Elon University, Corning Inc., Glaxo, North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Research Triangle Institute, University of North Carolina, North Carolina State University, Orange County Human Resources, Hospice of Greensboro, Durham County, Brunswick County, Motricity, NC Community Health Care Association, Redwoods Group, Skansksa USA, Center for Child and Family Health, Duke Clinical Research Institute, Quintiles, Clintrials, Piedmont Health Services, Nash County, Sigma Gamma Rho, Project Dinah, NC Association of Health Clinics, Wake Health Services, Virginia Tech, NC Association of Social Workers.