SCUBA RANGERS  is a modern training and club based program for kids which are minimum 8 years old. No kids program in diving so far was designed  like the SCUBA RANGERS program. The manual especially designed to match children´s learning habits with the support of the video provokes the passion for the adventure "diving".

The training is separated in 5 different levels. The kids learn with a lot of fun the knowledge and the skills they need to become a safe diver. At the same time they experience how important discipline and team spirit are to reach the goal.  

The safety of the kids is the number one concern. Therefore SCUBA RANGERS programs are only allowed to be taught by specially trained instructors. The training takes place in the pool (or under confined water conditions in a protected area) up to a maximum depth of 4 metres (12 feet). In depths greater than 1,50 metres (5 feet) maximum two kids will be supervised by one instructor.

SCUBA RANGERS is not just a diving course, it is a long term activity where the kids can stay active in a SCUBA RANGERS Club! During the club sessions they learn about our environment, get more diving experience and have a fun time together. They will try underwater photography or night diving with torches in the swimming pool, visit zoos and aquariums, go to the cinema or take part in other challenging activities. 


The SCUBA RANGERS Philosophy

As a children’s outreach organization, the SCUBA RANGERS has a responsibility to promote good values. To keep it simple and fun, we’ve designed the SCUBA RANGERS Star, which defines the five points of a successful SCUBA RANGER:

Proper Knowledge: Rangers must learn the rules of responsible diving.

Proper Skills: Rangers must learn and practice the basic scuba skills.

Proper Equipment: Rangers must learn to use basic scuba equipment, and should own snorkeling equipment, and properly maintain and care for all equipment.

Proper Experience: Rangers should maintain diving proficiency, dive within their limits, and continue to learn more about scuba and water exploration.

Responsibility: Rangers should honor their responsibilities to their families, their community, the environment, and themselves.

The History of SCUBA RANGERS

The Scuba Rangers were started in 1999 by Paul Oberle, owner of Scuba Ventures in Shreveport, Louisiana, and an Instructor Certifier affiliated with Scuba Schools International (SSI). For 12 months he conducted a pilot program at his store, in association with Scuba Schools International. Paul pioneered children-specific training techniques, new terminology and educational philosophies, with the assistance of SSI Instructor Ashley Rosenthal. Scuba Schools International then worked with Paul to develop detailed instructional manuals and education products based on his program.

The Blue Angels
Scuba Rangers was launched at the Diving Equipment & Marketing Association (DEMA) trade show in Las Vegas in January, 2000. To demonstrate the power of the Scuba Rangers, Paul felt he had to let his kids perform. With assistance from Scuba Schools International, Paul and Ashley brought 12 of their original Rangers, nick-named the "Blue Angels," all the way from Shreveport to Las Vegas to dive in the DEMA demonstration pool.

In a whirlwind three-day period, the Angels blew away nearly everyone in the diving industry, including equipment manufacturers, retailers, resort operators and magazines. Even Jean-Michael Cousteau was charmed by the Angels, and he agreed to appear with them on the television program "Good Morning, Las Vegas."

The 2000 DEMA show was a wild success, and the Blue Angels had proved that kids have an important place in the diving industry. Scuba Schools International realized Scuba Rangers was the youth outreach program the industry desperately needed.

The Spin-off of Scuba Rangers
Talks with Paul and other Scuba Schools International affiliates who had already started Scuba Ranger Clubs convinced Scuba Schools International's parent company, Concept Systems, Inc.(CSI) that the program needed to be widely accessible to the entire diving industry.

"Sometimes an idea is so good, you have to make sacrifices for the overall health of the sport and the industry," said Bob Clark, Chairman of Concept Systems, Inc., and founder of Scuba Schools International. "Rangers is such an idea. Scuba Schools International affiliates displayed great unselfishness in encouraging us to open up the Rangers to the industry. We wouldn't have done it without their support. But they understand that, even if their competition starts a Ranger Club, turning lots of kids onto diving is the most important thing in the long run. They're hoping to make the pie bigger, and then to get their share of it."