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LACS Expert Speakers
Information and Bio's on Dive
Industry Experts that Present at ADP and UICC |
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About Our Experts
One of the many things
that sets our programs apart from others is our ability
to have leading experts in the dive community guest
lecture in our programs and courses. Below is a
sampling of just some of the regular speakers that teach
and lecture for our underwater programs: |
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Speaker |
Background |
Gretchen M. Ashton
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Topics Presented
Scuba Fitness
Bio
Gretchen M. Ashton is registered with the
National Board of Fitness Examiners and
International Sports Sciences Association. She
is an advanced diver, personal trainer, fitness
therapist, biomechanic strength trainer and
arthritis specialist.
Gretchen developed the first exercise protocols
for divers based on a health profile of the
diving community. She authored and presented the
first physical fitness module for dive
certification in the history of scuba diving for
the Los Angeles County Scuba Advanced Diver
Program.
Specializing in lifestyle fitness, she launched
the concept of Scuba Fitness, developed the
FitDiver® program and ScubaFit®, which are
dedicated to improving the health and fitness of
all scuba divers. Gretchen has been published by
Divers Alert Network in Alert Diver magazine,
she contributes to the Diverwire, a scuba diving
news publication, she was featured by the
President’s Council on Physical Fitness and
Sports in the President’s Challenge Newsletter
in the “Fitness is Fun” category for inspired
accomplishments and advancements. She presented
ScubaFit® at the Scuba Show in Long Beach,
California, has been a guest on Scuba Radio, and
has over 20 published articles.
She regularly visits dive clubs to increase the
awareness of divers to the importance of
physical fitness, relating what it means to be
physically fit for diving and how to apply
practical applications of exercise for diving.
A fitness professional since 1996, Gretchen
developed comprehensive peak-performance
strength programs for local eco-adventure teams,
fire fighters and athletes. As a public speaker
and columnist, she has been featured on radio,
local television news and in newspapers. As an
athlete, she became the second woman in AAU
Power Lifting history to receive Hall of Fame
recognition setting 21 American and World
Records. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Monica Bradley |
Topics Presented
Dive Emergency Management
Bio
Born London England. Registered Nurse. Educator
for paramedics and EMT's for the Fire Service.
Provided education for Baywatch and Avalon Fire
on Catalina for 6 years. Diver for 25 years.
Dive master 6 years ... works for Sport Chalet
on the Southern California Dive Boats. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Holger Brix, PhD. |
Topics Presented
Oceanography
Bio
1997 Diploma (M.Sc.) Meteorology, University of
Hamburg, Germany
2001 Dr. rer.-nat. (Ph.D.), Physics (Physical
Oceanography), University of Bremen, Germany
2001-2006 Post-Doctoral Researcher,
Biogeochemical Group, IGPP, University of
California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
since 2006 Assistant Researcher, IGPP, AOS,
JIFRESSE, University of California Los Angeles,
Los Angeles, CA
since 2006 Adjunct Assistant Professor, Dept. of
Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, UCLA, Los
Angeles, CA
Teaching for UCLA:
AOS1, Climate Change: From Puzzles to Policy
AOS3, Introduction to the Atmospheric
Environment
AOS103, Physical Oceanography
AOS105/EEB139, Introduction to Chemical
Oceanography
Water sports experience:
Competitive swimming (age 14-16), Bavarian state
championships, Germany
Youth Diving Certification
Sea Kayaking Instructor for the UCLA Marina
Aquatic Center since 2005 |
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Speaker |
Background |
Peter den Haan |
Topics Presented
Technical Diving
Bio
By profession, Peter has been a Mechanical
Engineer for more than 25 years. He has taken
his engineering experience and implemented a
high standard of training at Progressive Diving
Institute and with its staff. With over a 1000
logged dives, Peter specializes in pushing the
state of the art in both training and equipment,
while maintaining the enjoyment of scuba diving
as the priority for himself and the students.
Peter founded Progressive Diving Institute in
1994 with his mission to provide high quality
instruction in all aspects of Scuba Diving from
Basic to Instructor, as well as Technical and
Rebreather Instruction. As an Instructor Trainer
& Course Director he passes this philosophy on
to his instructors. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Glen Egstrom, PhD. |
Topics Presented
Physiology of Diving
Bio
CURRENT
Professor of Kinesiology, (Emeritus)
University of California, Los Angeles
Director, Underwater Kinesiology Laboratory
Faculty, 1954-to date
EDUCATION
UCLA Master's Degree
University of Southern California Ph.D.
POSITIONS
Principal Investigator, UCLA Diving Safety
Research Project for the evaluation of diving
equipment, emergency procedures and training
methods 1965-1999
Diving Safety Officer
Scuba Training Program
UCLA
1961- to date
National Association of Underwater Instructors
Past President, 1970-1975
Advisory Board, 1975-to date
Member, 1966-1999
Course Director or Training Director for 34
underwater instructor courses and special
courses on recent developments in equipment for
underwater work.
Fellow, American College of Sports Medicine
1962-1999
Research Scientist, Naval Medical Research
Institute, Environmental Stress Program,
1975-1988
Our World Underwater Scholarship Society
Executive Committee, 1972-1992
Chairman, 1983-1987
National Swimming Pool Safety Committee,
Steering Committee, Research Committee Chairman,
1987-1991
American Academy of Underwater Sciences,
Executive Committee, 1980-1989
President, 1989
Member, 1980-1999
National Association Search and Rescue
Member, 1988-1999
Diving Safety Advisor to Diving Safety and Water
Rescue Committee, 1992
Council for National Cooperation in Aquatica,
Member, 1981-1992
National Advisory Committee on Aquatic Safety,
1986-1992
Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society,
1970-1999
AWARDS
NAUI, Leonard Greenstone Dive Safety Award, 1976
NOGI Award, Underwater Society of America
Distinguished Service, 1969
Science, 1982
Oceaneering International Award - Undersea
Medical Society
DEMA Reaching Out Award, 1989; DEMA Hall of
Fame, 1989
PUBLICATIONS
Over 100 publications related to aquatic sports
and scuba diving safety, including the Diving
Equipment and Human Performance chapters in the
publication, 'Diving Medicine' edited by Alfred
A. Bove, W.B. Saunders, 1997. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Glennon T. Gingo |
Topics Presented
Skin Diving Techniques
Bio
Currently an Aquatics Consultant including
consultant for aquatics training programs and
activities including SCUBA diving leadership /
instruction, freediving, C.P.R., lifeguarding,
aquatic first aid, diving safety and diving
research. Other areas include:
Expert witness for legal cases involving diving
and aquatics, underwater investigations –
videographer and program consultant for
leadership in environmental / marine education
Began diving in 1974 and trained under the NAUI
program as a Basic Diver and then in 1975 as and
Advanced Diver. Received the YMCA National
Instructor Certification for SCUBA in 1985 and
then Instructor-trainer in 1990. Concurrently a
PADI Instructor and Instructor –Trainer for SEI.
Received the Los Angeles County Underwater
Instructor Rating (crossover) in 2002.
Certified as an Instructor-Trainer with HSA
(1997) and also the Chinese Taipei Federation on
Diving Instructors (1998). Served as western
(U.S.) field and international instructor -
trainer for YMCA SCUBA.
Major accomplishments in the field of aquatics,
SCUBA and Freediving include:
• Assisting in the development of SCUBA diving
leadership programs in Tokyo, Japan, Taipei,
Taiwan and Busan, Korea.
• Designing and implemented freediving safety
program for U.S. Navy Special Warfare Command,
Coronado, Ca. under contract with SEAL Team
Training Command (BUDS).
• Staffed research project on the history of the
Korean “Hanyo” – Busan, Korea
• Participated in the U.S. Navy sponsored
Breath-hold study for U.S. Navy SOCOM-Specwarfare
Command conducted by Duke University and the
Divers Alert Network (D.A.N.).
• Commissioner for “Aloha State Games”
Freediving competitions (2002-Current).
• Developed Freediving safety protocols for the
U.S. Freediving Team.
• Contributed to various publications on the
sport of Freediving including National
Geographic – Adventure Magazine, ESPN Sports,
Outdoor, YMCA Currents, London Times-Sunday
Times and Hawaii Skin Diver Magazine. |
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Speaker |
Background |
M. David Henry |
Topics Presented
Physics
Bio
M. David Henry is a Phd candidate in Applied
Physics at California Institute of Technology
working in semiconductor fabrication and nuclear
magnetic resonance. He is currently holds a
Hertz Foundation Fellowship.
He holds a M.Sc from California Institute of
Technology in Applied Physics, a B.Sc in Applied
Mathematics and a B.Sc in Electrical Engineering
with Honors from University of Arizona. Prior
to his education, David served 6 years in the
United States Navy on nuclear submarines as both
a nuclear reactor operator and as a Navy diver.
He is a PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer and a
certified technical diver. He is an experienced
gas blender and has been a practicing certified
equipment repair technician for over 10 years.
David has been diving for over 13 years. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Karl Huggins, PhD. |
Topics Presented
Decompression Theory
Bio
Karl Huggins has been the Program Manager for
the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber Facility at the
USC Wrigley Marine Science Center since 1992. He
started diving in 1977 and has been a NAUI
Instructor since 1980.
He is noted for his work in decompression theory
and models, which resulted in the Michigan Sea
Grant (HUGI) tables and his participation in the
development of the EDGE dive computer. Karl
enjoys educating divers in the area of
decompression (making divers more aware of the
limitations of dive tables and computers) and
diving safety. To that end he has given hundreds
of lectures, seminars, and workshops as a
featured speaker at conferences around the
world.
He has authored many articles and publications
on decompression theory, including, most
recently, "The Dynamics of Decompression
Workbook," and contributing to "Dive Computers -
A Consumer's Guide to History, Theory, and
Performance." Karl is the 1990 recipient of the
Leonard Greenstone Diving Safety Award, the
DAN/Rolex Diver of the Year for 1993, the 2004
Conrad Limbaugh Memorial Award for Scientific
Diving Leadership and the 2008 California Scuba
Service Award. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Ken Kurtis |
Topics Presented
Business of Diving
Bio
Ken Kurtis got certified in 1978 as part of a
radio station promotion to set a Guinness record
for underwater broadcasting. He became a NAUI
Instructor in 1980 and has taught thousands of
people over the years. He's logged close to 5000
dives, still actively teaches everything from
entry-level on up, and confesses his favorite
class to teach is Fish Identification.
Ken leads many foreign trips (Sea of Cortez,
Yap, Palau, Bonaire, Midway Island, Fiji,
Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Cayman, and the
Bahamas are just a few of the stamps in his
passport) as well as diving locally. He's served
as chairman of Chamber Day/Eve since the early
90s, has been a volunteer Diver/Team Leader at
the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach since
1998, and shoots photos & writes for local and
national scuba publications. Ken also serves a
Forensic Consultant to the Los Angeles County
Coroner for scuba fatalities, providing gear
testing and accident analysis. In addition, he
works as an expert witness for the law firms
that handle defense for suits brought against
NAUI or PADI stores and instructors.
Ken has been the owner of Reef Seekers Dive Co.
in Beverly Hills since 1988. One of L.A.'s
larger and more active local dive shops, Reef
Seekers operated as a full-service dive center
offering sales, service, training, and trips.
Due to a lease issue, the retail storefront was
closed at the end of 2006, but the shop still
exists in a virtual world (www.reefseekers.com)
and now concentrates on local and foreign trips,
along with some advanced training.
Ken has written and lectured extensively on the
business side of diving and in his talk for UICC
will cover area relating to shop operations, how
the instructor fits in to the big picture,
economic models, legal aspects that you need to
consider, marketing, and whatever else strikes
his fancy. The talk will be presented in a very
free-form format, with plenty of time for
questions and interactions from the UICC
candidates. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Dr. Tom Millington |
Topics Presented
Medical Aspects of Diving, Dive Emergencies
Bio
Board Certified Family Practice, Undersea and
Hyperbaric Medicine and Certified Wound
Specialist. Certified by NAUI in 1979,
specialty is underwater photography. Medical
Director for Polytechnic College of Oceaneering
and Engineering in L A and San Diego, and also
Santa Barbara City College-Marine Tech Dept.
Teach at both colleges.
Medical consultant and underwater photographer
for Ventura County Sheriff's Underwater Search &
Rescue team. Has been Medical Director of Los
Robles Hospital's Hyperbaric Dept, and then St
John's Pleasant Valley Hospital Hyperbaric
Dept. Now working in Hyperbarics at Bakersfield
Memorial Hospital and the soon to be opened
Valley Presbyterian Hospital's Wound Care &
Hyperbaric Dept. I have my own private office
for wound care and diving medicine in Thousand
Oaks.
Authored over a dozen papers on diving medicine,
carbon monoxide poisoning, chronic wound care
and diabetic foot wound care. Lectures around
the country on diving medicine and also wound
care, and also have lectured in the Netherlands,
Cuba, Malaysia, the Maldives, Sidney Australia,
Honduras and Nicaragua. Have set up hyperbaric
clinics in both Honduras and Nicaragua. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Glynn Palmer |
Topics Presented
Regulator Function and Identification
Bio
Glynn Palmer, owner and chief engineer of Malibu
Scuba Repair has over 20 years experience in
maintaining and overhauling scuba equipment.
Glynn received his technical education in
England and the United States, and is a PADI
Course Director.
Malibu Scuba Repair is the primary regulator and
valve repair provider for seven quality Dive
Stores in Southern California and serves a wide
clientele of recreational and technical divers.
As a dive professional I know and appreciate the
importance of dive equipment maintenance and
servicing. Having equipment you can rely on can
be a matter of life and death. Make sure you
have your equipment inspected, serviced and
repaired at least annually by an experienced
professional. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Mike Schaadt |
Topics Presented
Marine Life Identification
Bio
Cabrillo Marine Aquarium (CMA) is a facility of
the City of Los Angeles, Department of
Recreation and Parks. The Director guides the
activities of this public aquarium with a $3
million annual budget, 35 full-time and 65
part-time staff, over 500 volunteers and annual
attendance of about 300,000. The Director is a
liaison to the FRIENDS of CMA, a non-profit,
fundraising group whose membership and Board of
Directors support the mission of CMA.
Mike Schaadt is the fourth director in the 70+
year history of CMA following Dr. William H.
Lloyd, John M. Olguin and, most recently, Dr.
Susanne Lawrenz-Miller.
Born, raised and educated in Southern
California, Mike has been involved in formal and
informal marine science education for more than
30 years. He graduated with a Bachelors degree
in Marine Biology and a Master's degree in
Biology from CSULB. Mike has taught biology at
local community colleges and brings to his job a
strong background in science education. He has a
keen interest in finding novel ways to motivate
people to learn about and care for the oceans.
His research interest is the natural history of
plankton with special emphasis on deepsea forms.
He has been a SCUBA diver for over 25 years and
is an avid ocean swimmer spending many of his
lunch hours swimming at Cabrillo Beach.
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Speaker |
Background |
Dr. Tabby Stone |
Topics Presented
Decompression Theory
Bio
Dr. Stone is a Pediatrician in the Los Angeles
area. He’s been an avid diver who developed an
interest in diving medicine after his initial
certification in 1979.
Dr. Stone’s interest in diving medicine began in
1979 when he was asked to do medical exams for
the other members of his certification class. A
few months later he took the first of many
courses in diving medicine and learned what he
should have looked for.
He is a past president of the Pacific Chapter of
the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society and
wrote the Medical Facts column in “Discover
Diving” from 1988 – 1999. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Hal Wells |
Topics Presented
Equipment Function
Bio
Hal is an Accomplished SCUBA Diver with Dive
Master, Instructor and Course Director ratings
from PADI, NAUI, DAN, SDI and TDI. Underwater
Videography and Stock footage are his specialty.
Hal has worked for many of the top underwater
film teams on the sets of many Hollywood
productions. He has worked as talent, stunts,
stunt safety, camera assistant, underwater A.D.
and Camera Operator.
He has certified many "A list" celebrities and
has a calm and common sensical approach to
teaching the lifelong hobby of SCUBA diving. |
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Speaker |
Background |
Mark Williams |
Topics Presented
Risk Management
Bio
Mr. Williams joined LaFollette Johnson in 2003
after practicing law for 24 years as an
insurance defense attorney. Prior to joining
LaFollette Johnson, Mr. Williams engaged in the
solo practice of insurance defense work from
1997 to 2003. Prior to that, he was senior trial
counsel, product liability, for Wausau Insurance
Company from 1992 to 1997. Prior to that, he was
a shareholder with the Law Offices of
Breidenbach, Swainston, Crispo & Way of Los
Angeles.
Mr. Williams has tried in excess of 60 cases in
Superior Courts in California and in the United
States District Courts in California, Colorado
and Texas. Mr. Williams is rated AV by
Martindale-Hubbell. He is a member of the State
Bar of California, and is admitted to practice
in the United States District Court for the
Southern, Central, Eastern and Northern
Districts of California and the United States
Supreme Court.
Mr. Williams received his B.A. in History from
California State University at Los Angeles in
1972. He received his J.D. from the University
of Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1979.
Mr. Williams was born on April 13, 1950 in
Glendale, California. An Eagle Scout, parent and
sustaining member of the Calvin Coolidge
Elementary P.T.A., Mr. Williams is the former
cub master of Cub Pack 258, San Gabriel,
California and a former little league coach. A
certified scuba diver since the 1960s, Mr.
Williams is also certified as a scuba instructor
with the County of Los Angeles and is registered
as a scientific diver with the American Academy
of Underwater Scientists. He serves as a
volunteer scientific diver at the Aquarium of
the Pacific in Long Beach. Mr. Williams is a
member of the board of directors of the Los
Angeles County Underwater Instructors'
Association, which advises the L.A. County Parks
and Recreation Department in matters related to
the County's scuba diving programs. |
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Guests Welcome
If you are a former ADP or UICC
graduate, we welcome you to attend any classroom lecture
for our currently operating programs or courses.
It's a great way to stay up to date and informed, all we
ask that you call ahead and let us know that you are
interested in attending.
For more information, or to reserve a seat, call (323)
726-2155 or email us at
info@lacountyscuba.com. |
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