David Waud went on his first SCUBA dive in 1970 when he was a rookie teacher of Algebra and Geometry at a school in Winter Park, Florida. That same year he founded a wildly popular SCUBA diving club called “The Coral Creepers” which became the most active organization in the entire school. Many students, teachers and even parents learned to SCUBA dive so that they could join David on exciting trips to explore the underwater world in and around Florida and the Bahamas.
After his retirement from regular classroom teaching in 1974 followed by two years spent getting a Master’s Degree, David started Underwauder Productions, returning to schools with his one-of-a-kind SCUBAssemblies which have since been invited to more than one thousand elementary and middle schools in twenty-eight states and Canada. His first professional production “Tails of the South Pacific” was filmed the summer after he finished graduate school in 1976. He has been producing spectacular new shows about the animals in the ocean since then. Many schools have invited him back ten or more times with each new program.
Testimonials
“The students and teachers thoroughly enjoyed “Seafari.” Seeing the children sit so still and listening so intently at this time of year (during Spring Fever …) speaks highly of your program! Many classrooms have continued to study the ocean and African animals because of the high interest you generated. Your next visit to our school will be your twelfth time here, and we look forward to it with great anticipation!”
— Ellen Berger, First Grade Teacher Brush College Elementary School (Decatur, IL)
Pictured is David Waud and son Tucker.