Our Instructors
Kelly Quinn
Born and raised right here in the DMV, Kelly Quinn began his martial arts training at the age of thirteen, and quickly fell in love with the creative physical culture and opportunity for individual expression. A high school folkstyle wrestler, Kelly eventually developed a unique and effective style of submission grappling that earned him an undefeated MMA record at five wins and zero losses in the cage.
In addition to his competitive wrestling and MMA experience, Kelly is proud to hold the rank of Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under local combat sports legend and renowned BJJ coach, Professor Nakapan Phungephorn of BETA Academy.
Guided by Nakapan’s tutelage and mentorship, Kelly has spent more than a decade honing his craft. In addition to building his own extensive competition resume – which has taken him to high-level venues such as Metamoris, Fight 2 Win, major IBJJF tournaments, and the ADCC Trials – Kelly has carefully cultivated his pedagogical knowledge and coaching skills. He’s worked with students ranging from day one white belts to veteran jiu-jitsu athletes, and views academy ownership as the ultimate medium for sharing what he loves with as many people as possible.
A passionate teacher at heart, Kelly is also a certified personal trainer with over ten years of experience helping clients of all ages build stronger, healthier, and happier bodies.
Joy Lee “Southwest” McMullen
Joy Lee was born in the District of Columbia at the turn of the millennium to an Irish Korean father and a Scottish German mother.
Growing up their father exposed them to Boxing and Kung Fu films, and discovering Shonen anime, and fighting games such as street fighter and smash brothers, the the beauty they found in the fighting arts inspired them to compete and pursue mastery in BJJ and Muay Thai
But it was their found passion for and self study of martial arts history and philosophy that tempered their spirit, pushing them towards an existential spiritual perspective, and a balanced practice of the art of war and the art of peace.
Robert Cowles
Robert was born and raised in Atlanta, GA. It was there he started wrestling at the age of 12 and began training Brazilian jiu jitsu when he turned 15. He competed in MMA and had multiple amateur victories by the young age of 18. Deciding to pursue academic interests, Robert took a brief hiatus from training martial arts. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Geargia Tech in 2018 with a bachelor's in chemical engineering. After various professional endeavors including engineering, firefighting, and being an EMT, he decided to pursue his love for helping others by traveling to Washington D.C. in 2022 to attend the GWU School of Medicine. Since then, he has been balancing his passion for medicine and BJJ under the tutelage of Kelly Quinn. Robert has a knack for studying the intricacies of the martial art, especially in the competition scene, and breaking high-level concepts into easily digestible pieces for others to learn. His knowledgeable, yet loving and friendly nature makes him a vital component of the Vortex Jiu Jitsu family.
Beau Doerr
Beau was born and raised in Florida and was introduced to wrestling through his father at the young age of 6 years old. Beau has 15+ years competitive wrestling experience. He is a 2x state place winner in high school, competed at the University of Florida for the club wrestling team. Was a finalist at 157 pounds at the NCWA national championships earning all-American status. 4 years coaching experience in wrestling at the University of Florida and now a blue belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
