Pro Dive Staff
Our staff of multi-level, multi-agency instructors offer you dynamic and comprehensive training at all levels. Career students benefit from this diverse insight into various teaching techniques so they can develop their own style.
- As a team, our staff has trained nearly 3,000 instructors — more than any other school in the entire dive industry!
- Our staff has extensive dive experience — over 50,000 logged dives collectively!
- All of our instructors are certified PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainers or higher.
Learn more about our Pro Dive Team Members:
Bryan Armstrong
Originally from Cleveland, Bryan graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the College of Wooster, and traded Lake Erie for the Atlantic to earn his Master’s in Marine Biology from Nova Southeastern University. Bryan spent time with Sea Dwellers Dive Center in Key Largo, before joining the crew of the Pro Diver II as a Divemaster/Instructor. In early 2010, Bryan assumed responsibilities for management of the Retail Department, the nerve center of Pro Dive, and quickly set about re-designing the store layout and developing new merchandizing strategies, as well as introducing new product lines from Ikelite and Momentum Dive Watches. Bryan is also featured in the video Dive Bombing Tenneco Towers on the Pro Dive YouTube Channel, showcasing his 28 second/80 foot descent to tie off on the wreck. In addition to his expertise with Aqua Lung, Atomic, Dive Rite, DUI, and Princeton Tec, Bryan is well versed with Pro Dive’s inventory of freediving equipment from O.ME.R, Water Way, and Dessault; he is a PFI-certified Freediver who led his Basic training class with a 3 minute 20 second static breath hold.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Legend LX regulator with ABS octopus; SeaQuest Balance BCD; Suunto D4 computer; Aqua Lung 5mm Aquaflex wetsuit or rash guard & board shorts; Aqua Lung Express full-foot fins; Atomic Frameless or Technisub Sphera mask.
Mike Boyd
Born in Suffolk, England to American parents, Mike came to the US at age three, settling in the Ft. Lauderdale area. That makes him almost a native-born Floridian. Mike was Open Water certified in 2004. Five years later, after a long career in telecommunications sales and business ownership, he gave into his passion for diving and completed Phases I-IV of Pro Dive’s Career Development Curriculum. An internship on the Pro Diver II after ROS led to his being offered a Divemaster/Instructor position on the boat where he now leads dives and teaches OW, AOW, and various PADI specialty courses. When not diving, Mike can be found wakeboarding and involved as a youth group leader; he and his wife Teresa are the parents of Brian, 17, and Kayla, 13.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Legend LX regulator with octopus; Suunto Cobra and D4 computers; Aqua Lung 3mm Aquaflex wetsuit; Aqua Lung Express full-foot or Slingshot open-heeled fins; Atomic Subframe mask.
Bradly Cunningham
Braving the chilly November waters of a Chicagoland quarry at age twelve for a YMCA OW certification, Captain Brad became truly hooked on the sport during a family trip to Cozumel with his avid diver parents. Ten years later, in December of 1998, he, along with his younger sister Shannon, came to Pro Dive for their AOW and Phases I-IV Professional Development certifications. After completing their ROS programs in early 1999, Shannon opted for island life, including dive resort work in the Turks & Caicos and Hawaii, while Brad immediately joined the crew of the Pro Diver II and quickly progressed from Divemaster/Instructor to First Mate to Captain. In January 2007, Brad dropped to part-time status when he became a Captain and Director of Sales & Marketing for TowBoat U.S.- Ft. Lauderdale. In January 2010, Brad returned to Pro Dive fulltime as the Director of Charters, with responsibilities for managing the Charter Department, including the captains and crew, and supervising the upkeep of the Pro Diver II. TDI and DSAT trained in technical diving and a PFI-certified Freediver, Brad is also responsible for practical instruction to ROS students during their boat time and is Pro Dive’s principal liaison with the yachting and marine services industries. Brad and his wife Katie welcomed a baby boy, Fox, in 2009 and are expecting a second child this summer.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Legend regulator; SeaQuest Pro QD BCD with Airsource alternate inflator; Suunto D4 computer; Aqua Lung 5mm Aquaflex or 2mm shorty wetsuit; and at least four pairs of full-foot fins including Technisub Stratos; Technisub Sphera mask.
Stu
Dye
Widely considered one of South Florida's most experienced and knowledgeable captains, Captain Stu's first dive, ironically, was as a Nebraska teenager in an Iowa lake, circa 1972. Fast-forward twenty years and Stu has graduated from the University of Nebraska and left a sales career in the agricultural industry to become a PADI Master Instructor, NAUI Instructor, TDI Instructor-Trainer, certified full-cave diver, and a renowned technical diver with extensive deep air experience. Fast-forward almost another twenty years and Stu has captained more than 8,000 charters and logged more than 2,500 dives. When not piloting the Pro Diver II along Florida's best wrecks and reefs, Pro Dive's Senior Captain is piloting his Mustang race car along Florida's best PRO-class drag strips.
Equipment: 60’ glass-bottom USCG licensed dive vessel.
Lee Gano
PADI and DSAT Course Director, TDI Instructor-Trainer, dive industry manufacturer’s sales rep, and USCG 100-Ton Master’s Captain, Lee has been diving since the age of ten. Born and raised in Dallas, his early diving featured both Texas lakes and the Caribbean. He first became a PADI Instructor in 1988, achieved his Course Director status in 1997, and holds more than 40 different instructor specialty certifications. After graduating from film school in California, Lee began working as a cinematographer above and below the water. His work in front and behind the camera includes productions for Warner Bros., A&E, Discovery Channel, and Sea World, and he can be seen in many of the PADI training videos and print material. After spending twelve years as a shark research diver and videographer in Los Angeles, he returned to Texas to manage one of the state’s largest dive facilities. Lee spent 2003-2004 in Florida, as the Director of Training for two Palm Beach dive operations. He earned his Instructor -Trainer status with Technical Diving International (TDI) in 2001 and is now part of several cave exploration teams. Lee has logged over 7000 dives and has certified well over 1000 divers and holds professional ratings with PADI, TDI-SDI, IANTD, DAN, Red Cross, EFR, EFRD, and Medic First Aid. In addition to his Pro Dive CEO duties, he is currently the Scuba Training Director for the University of North Texas, and President of Seaslave Inc.
Equipment: Atomic T2 Titanium regulator; SeaQuest Balance BCD with Airsource alternate inflator or Dive Rite Nomad for sidemount; Suunto Helo II (Trimix) computer; DUI custom drysuit or Aqua Lung Quantum Stretch 3mm wetsuit; Aqua Lung Rocket Fins; Aqua Lung Look mask.
Jayne Haas A native New Englander, Jayne has been Pro Dive’s Career Development Administrator since October of 1992, and is the expert on staff for all programs from the Veterans Administration (including Montgomery GI Bill and Post-911 VA benefits), British Military Resettlement, and Vocational Rehab for all 50 states. Jayne is also the principal liaison for Pro Dive’s accreditation with the State of Florida Commission for Independent Education. Her knowledge and experience make certain that Pro Dive students receive their maximum funding and entitlements and are enabled to pursue an appropriate career development curriculum. Jayne is often the first point of contact for any student inquiring about training.
Equipment: Computer and phone with toll-free US and UK numbers.
H. Kelly Levendorf
Celebrating his thirtieth year diving, Kelly has been instructing since 1982, first through NASDS, while working for a dive center as an undergraduate at American University in Washington, DC, and later providing NAUI instruction at the University of Pittsburgh. In 1985, Kelly enjoyed his first dive with Pro Dive on the wreck of the Mercedes, just one week after it was sunk. In the last days of the twentieth century, Kelly decided to “retire” from the corporate world and pursue his passion for instruction fulltime by crossing-over to PADI and enrolling in the ROS program. After a brief period at Key Largo’s Amoray Dive Resort, Kelly returned to Pro Dive in the summer of 2000 and for the next three years was the Director of Recruitment and Job Placement. In 2003, he left to run three successful diving operations of his own in the Palm Beaches. Kelly returned again in 2007 to work with Pro Dive students, developing their professional training and career paths. In addition to his administrative duties, Kelly is a Master Instructor who has certified more than 500 divers, from OW through Assistant Instructor. He is also an experienced technical diver, TDI-SDI and IANTD Instructor, and PFI-certified Freediver. In January 2009, Kelly’s oldest son, Chaz, became the family’s second generation of PADI Instructors, and now teaches in Moscow, Russia; his two other college-age sons, Zach and Ethan, are also accomplished divers. Kelly has been featured in Diver and Sport Diver magazines in the UK, and is a frequent contributor to Scuba Diving in their “Ask an Expert” series.
Equipment: Apeks TX 200 regulator; Dive Rite Transplate with Venture Wing and Atomic SSI alternate air source inflator or Dive Rite Transpac II with Dual Rec Wing; Suunto Vytec computer with transmitter; DUI drysuit or Oceaner Rec45 3mm freediving wetsuit; O.ME.R. Millennium long-blade full-foot fins or open-heeled Aqua Lung Rocket Fins; Atomic Frameless or Technisub Sphera mask.
Ryan McClellan
Pro Dive’s Director of Media has been diving since the age of 15. After graduating from the University of Florida with a degree in Electronic Intermedia, Ryan decided to combine his two passions and began working as an underwater videographer, diving and filming throughout the Caribbean, including the Bahamas, Belize, Cayman and Bay Islands, as well as in Hawaii. In addition to being an accomplished videographer and post-editor, Ryan is a PADI Divemaster, a USCG 100-Ton Master’s Captain, a certified USA Water Ski Trainer Driver, and a Water Ski and Wakeboard Instructor. The duties of the Director of Media include managing and mentoring the three-member team of interns from the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale; designing all print and digital marketing media; writing, producing and directing Pro Dive’s in-house videos; and teaching in the world’s first and only branded Sea&Sea School of UW Photography. Ryan is happiest, of course, cruising Ft. Lauderdale’s wrecks and reefs with his SEA&SEA DX-2G camera and Sony HDV Camcorder in its Gates housing. The quintessential ocean-lover, Ryan makes his home aboard his 36’ Sea Ray.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Titan LS regulator with octopus; SeaQuest Pro QD BCD; Suunto Cobra 3 computer; DUI drysuit or Aqua Lung 5mm Aquaflex wetsuit; Aqua Lung Blades II open-heeled fins; Aqua Lung Micron mask.
Charlie Patrick
Charlie started diving in a cold, muddy lake near his hometown of San Antonio and, surprisingly, was immediately hooked. After graduating from UT-San Antonio with degrees in History and German, Charlie began spending too much time in a cubicle staring at a computer screen. Dissatisfied with the corporate world, he quit his job in the securities and investment field and called Pro Dive to enroll in the next available IDC. After graduation from ROS in October 2007, Charlie immediately began working at Pro Dive as an instructor; in early 2008 he left Florida to work on Hawaii’s Big Island as one of the many Pro Dive Alumni staff members at Jack’s Diving Locker. Returning here in the fall of 2008, Charlie now directs Pro Dive’s Wholesale PADI Materials Department and online store, and is the lead Instructor for the four PSI technician certifications in the ROS program. Charlie is currently pursuing his Master’s degree in Education.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Titan LX Regulator with ABS octopus; SeaQuest Balance BCD; and Suunto Vytec DS computer; Aqua Lung 3mm Aquaflex wetsuit; Atomic Split-fins; Aqua Lung Omni mask.
Chuck Perkins
Born in New Orleans and raised in Frederick, MD, Captain Chuck has been operating dive boats in South Florida for more than two decades. He was first certified by Pro Dive in its original Pompano Beach setting in 1984 and earned his PADI Divemaster rating in the same location. A 100-ton Master’s Captain, Chuck is our Weekend Warrior, commanding the Pro Diver II on Saturdays and Sundays, occasionally with his lovely wife Diane aboard as a diver.
Equipment: remarkably similar to that of Captain Stu.
Alejandro Villa Ospina
Originally from Bogota, Colombia, Alex gave up the corporate world after graduation from Javeriana University in 1998, and came to Florida in 2006. He has been with two different PADI Career Development Centers as an IDC-Staff Instructor. In addition to duties on the boat, Alex is often involved in our Rescue and Divemaster courses and directs all Spanish-language instruction. Alex spends much of his time-off with dive equipment on, and HDV camera and Ikelite housing in hand, perfecting his videography skills. The Dive Bombing Tenneco Towers video was shot by Alex as he followed his coworker Bryan down 80 feet in 28 seconds to tie off on the wreck.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Legend regulator with octopus; SeaQuest Latitude XLT BCD; Suunto Cobra computer; Aqua Lung 5mm Aquaflex wetsuit or 3mm hooded vest and board shorts; Aqua Lung Rocket Fins; Aqua Lung Clarity mask.
(Jason) Wedge
Wedge began diving in 2000, in an OW course with his mother. His father and brother followed just one week later, and scuba became the new family activity, principally in the freshwater springs and caverns of North Florida. After nine years in the family computer business as their lead technician, Wedge decided that the only computer he ever wanted to look at again would be a dive computer, and he enrolled at Pro Dive, moving from Rescue Diver through ROS. After graduation, Wedge was placed in less than a week with a Ft. Lauderdale dive operation, conducting hotel-based DSDs and leading beach dives to a spot that became known as Wedge’s Ledge, as well as crewing on their snorkel and dive boat. Wedge returned to Pro Dive in the fall of 2008 and was quickly named First Mate aboard the Pro Diver II, responsible for supervising the crew, assisting the captains, and addressing the not-unsubstantial daily maintenance of a 60’ dive vessel. An Aqua Lung Master Technician, Wedge is currently enrolled in the Bachelor’s program in Marine Biology at Broward College.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Mikron regulator with octopus; SeaQuest Zuma BCD; Suunto D4 computer; Aqua Lung Express full-foot fins; Atomic Frameless mask This northern Florida transplant dives year round in a rash guard & board shorts.
Carolyn Windus
From Cuba, NY by way of Houston, TX, Carolyn came to Pro Dive shortly after her graduation from Alfred University with a degree in Biology in 2004. Upon finishing her ROS, Carolyn was immediately hired by another Florida PADI Career Development Center and spent the next four years on the management team of it, as well as on that of a second CDC, before returning to Pro Dive in 2009. After a short stint as the Director of Wholesale Materials, Carolyn moved from the diving business to the business of diving, when she assumed her present duties as the Pro Dive Office Manager, responsible for the daily administration of Human Resources, accounting, and effectively integrating the three business entities of Training, Retail, and Charters. Since life can’t be all fun & games, Carolyn will occasionally teach an OW or Specialty course!
Equipment: Aqua Lung Mikron regulator with octopus; SeaQuest Libra BCD; Suunto Gekko and D6 computers; Aqua Lung 3mm Quantum Stretch wetsuit; Atomic Split-Fins; Aqua Lung Quartz 1 mask.
Photo & Video Interns
Ray Stranagan
A senior at the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale, Ray is pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Video Production and Digital Filmmaking. An AOW Diver originally from Albany, NY, Ray has been diving for just under two years; his plans for diving include receiving his PADI Rescue and Divemaster certifications. Ray enjoys all extreme sports, especially snowboarding and wakeboarding, and is an avid golfer and guitar player.
Equipment: Aqua Lung Legend regulator with octopus; SeaQuest Pro QD BCD; Suunto Gekko computer; DUI drysuit or Aqua Lung 3mm Aquaflex wetsuit; Aqua Lung Express full-foot fins;
