Nasds

[Dan Barrows]

Many of us started out as NASDS divers. NASDS has now been merged into SSI, but in the early days, there was only NASDS, NAUI, and L.A. County certifications!

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

and if you wear NASDS before 1978 then your in trouble because they had a fire lost records ect ect .

 

[caymaniac]

I've heard that if you send in $50.00 to SSI they will send you a "C" card. Is this true?

Dive Safe,
Caymaniac

 

[Walter]

Not exactly true. YMCA predates both NAUI and NASDS.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

1955 L.A. County
1959 YMCA
1960 NAUI (I know this one is correct)
1962 NASDS; PADI
Ber

 

[Dan Barrows]

No, actually, SSI has one of the best open water programs in the industry now. With the merger with NASDS, SSI is now the second largest training agency. They have just developed a new Open Water program that beats them all!

 

[Walter]

1954 L.A. County
1959 YMCA
1960 NAUI
1961 NASDS
1966 PADI
1970 SSI

 

[Rick Murchison]

For those who're interested, SSI was a "child" of NASDS, formed by NASDS folks who felt they had a better idea. The "child" outgrew the parent, so when they decided the family needed to get back together, SSI was chosen as the agency name - both because SSI had become the larger agency and because the name already incorporated the "International" rather than the "National" moniker. The objective was to take the best ideas from both agencies to become the best in the industry.
Rick

 

[Bill Jurel]

I didn't see any NASDS prior to 66. I was certified May of 1965 (I was 15) by a dive program at Oceanside Harbor then. My card was replaced by NASDS when it self destructed sometime later and they reissued through Memphis as being certified by Dale Cooper of the Diving Locker in Pacific Beach, Ca. The card has my SS# on it as "T.I.C.", "Open Water Diver" And yes it has seperated into 2 pieces. I don't know if I can get a new replacement or not or if needed?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba.]

I didn't see any NASDS prior to 66. I was certified May of 1965 (I was 15) by a dive program at Oceanside Harbor then. My card was replaced by NASDS when it self destructed sometime later and they reissued through Memphis as being certified by Dale Cooper of the Diving Locker in Pacific Beach, Ca. The card has my SS# on it as "T.I.C.", "Open Water Diver" And yes it has seperated into 2 pieces. I don't know if I can get a new replacement or not or if needed?

I want first to correct some misinformation from the very early days of this thread.

NASDS did form in 1961 as indicated above, but it was not then a dive instructional agency, and it did not issue certifications. The name then was the National Association of Skin Diving STORES, and it was a trade organization dedicated to helping with the sale of scuba-related gear. After several years, it realized that the best way to help sell gear was to make scuba instruction part of the total package, and it changed its name to the National Association of Skin Diving SCHOOLS. That should explain why it did not allow for independent instructors; its instructors had to be associated with stores so that they could help facilitate gear sales. I don't know when that change was made exactly; it was not long after PADI came into being.

Its headquarters was then in Tennessee, across the street from one of the most effective stores with which it was affiliated. It was not doing well financially. The owner of that store (and 3 other stores), Doug McNeese, bought NASDS and went to work across the street. He brought his store's marketing techniques with him. Eventually SSI and NASDS merged, with McNeese staying with the new SSI. Then McNeese bought out the others and took over. The present SSI instructional materials and philosophy closely follow the NASDS materials and philosophy he used in the past, so although the name NASDS no longer exists, what essentially happened in a nutshell is that NASDS changed its name to SSI. They have since been purchased by Head/Mares, but I am pretty sure McNeese is still running the program. (Source: a series of presentations by Doug McNeese.)

If your NASDS card is no longer in working order, contact SSI. They will do whatever they can for you.