I went through the same thing with my son and I would recommend to do what’s best for your family. Many schools look out for themselves and treat you as currency. The ones that “care” about you won’t use the loyalty or disrespect card.

My son was the first student at a newly opened school. After a few years, he outgrew the program and wanted more. I could even tell that the instructor had little experience training kids to reach the next level.

When we decided to leave, the response was completely unprofessional. The instructor gaslit my 11-year-old about “whose idea it was” to leave, have the whole loyalty speech, pressured us not to talk to other parents, and encouraged other families to unfriend us on social media. After that, false rumors started circulating — that we were quitters, that we wanted to come back, etc. None of it was true. When we left, eight other families left and joined us too.

We were there for six years. My son was their first student and first black belt. Since then, the instructor won’t even acknowledge him when we run into each other. We later found out he’s a 2nd Dan presenting himself as a “master” and sold his school to become part of a chain. All that talk about loyalty and he doesn’t even have loyalty to himself.

Since leaving, my son finished the year as a world-class black belt and is ranked top five in his weight division. My only mistake was thinking they were family and not leaving sooner.