Garland Harris Jr. was born in Spring Valley, New York on May 13th, 1964. At the age of 14, he began his martial arts journey as a means to defend himself against bullies. From 1978 to 1988, he experimented with various martial arts and self-defense techniques, including Karate, Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Judo and wrestling. Eventually, Garland settled into Goju Ryu karate under the guidance of Sensei Jeff Thompson, a 3rd Dan Black Belt of international Goju Karate Champion Domingo Llanos. From 1993 to 1998, Garland was a ranked fighter on the International Sport Karate Association (ISKA) circuit. During this time, he trained alongside Shihan Kevin McGrath (Goju Ryu, NY) and Sensei Ogasawara (Judo, NJ) in addition to his training with Sensei Thompson.

In 1998, Garland moved to Orlando, Florida, where he trained under Shotokan Instructor Shihan Robert Rene for nearly two years before a serious work injury prevented him from continuing his training for many years. After a long period of recovery, Garland returned to karate in 2018 and became a student of Shodokan Okinawa Goju-Ryu under Kyoshi William Valdés of the Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Association. It was Kyoshi Valdes who awarded Garland his 1st Dan Black Belt, as well as his 2nd Dan Rank. Today, Garland is the Senior Black Belt Instructor under Kyoshi Valdes of The Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Association, with a school located in Clermont, Florida. He also holds a seat on the board of the World Traditional Karate Association, a non-profit organization 501(c)3.

Garland Sensei is also currently an Instructor at Riegs Security Training Center, Orlando, Florida. Teaching and Preparing New Security Officers with the skills needed to thrive in the Public Protection Sector.