New Course Directors successfully complete PADI’s bi-annual Course Director Training Program.
Success comes from striving to be the best and, for 38 PADI Members, this led them to the PADI Course Director Training Course conducted from 14 to 23 July 2009 at Sun Village Resort in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. Training with PADI Staff and supported by Northern Coast Diving, these professionals joined the elite group of PADI Course Directors and attained the highest and most respected professional rating in recreational scuba diving. 
Less than one percent of the PADI Membership has earned the PADI Course Director rating. For the Dominican Republic program, 59 hopefuls applied for the PADI Course Director Training Course, but after careful review of their experience, philosophical background and readiness for Course Director training, only 38 qualified. Selected candidates conduct all PADI certification courses and have earned the PADI Master Instructor, PADI Instructor Development Course Staff Instructor and Emergency First Response Instructor Trainer ratings while embodying role model standards.
“The PADI organization has offered the Course Director Training Course for the past 30 years,” says James Morgan, PADI Americas Vice President of Training and Customer Service. “This program is unique in the dive industry – you can’t just pay to get in – and it offers the broadest scope of training and education available. For ten days, candidates use what is often a lifetime of experience to earn the rating. The entire PADI organization proudly welcomes them into the family of PADI Course Directors worldwide.” 
From day one, candidates learn from a variety presentations, workshops and exercises, and complete intensive classroom and inwater evaluations. Each day, Course Directors develop the tools to help them thrive in today’s business climate, including sessions on marketing instructor development courses and the 2009 Survival Training presentation on succeeding during difficult economic times. As the best-of-the-best, graduates are highly employable after they successfully complete the PADI Course Director program.
A truly global program, the PADI Course Director Training Course has also been conducted in Japan, France, Spain, Australia, Malta, Malaysia and the United States. Candidates from 18 countries and speaking seven languages, including English, Korean, Italian, French, Polish, Russian and Portuguese, attended the Dominican Republic program. Seven translators – each of whom worked nearly as hard as the candidates themselves - provided simultaneous translation of the material. 
Special thanks are due to Sun Village Resort, Northern Coast Diving and PADI Course Director Mark Goldsmith. Their dedication and support helped make the July 2009 PADI Course Director Training Course a great success.
The PADI organization would also like to recognize and thank several special guests present during the Course Director Training Course Graduation Banquet:
- Ambassador Ian Worthington, British Ambassador to the Dominican Republic and Haiti
- Denis Lantigua, Head of Immigration for the North Coast of Dominican Republic
- Fred Elliott, Founder and Chairman of the Elliott Group and Owner of The Sun Village Resorts
- Joaquin Duenas, Chief Operating Officer of The Sun Village Resorts
And, of course, congratulations to all 38 new PADI Course Directors:
John Amerijckx - Belgium
Matthew Awty - Honduras
Kwangjin Kim - South Korea
Ho Bin Lee - South Korea
Wook Sun Lim - South Korea
Timothy Palmer - Hawaii, USA
Colwin Setzkorn - South Africa
Gregory Asnica - Belgium
Chris Azab - Egypt
Martyn Bayne - Canada
Robert Harris - Tennessee, USA
Georgia King - Costa Rica
Gary Lee - United Kingdom
Raul Puzzi Van Weezenbeek - Italy
Luc Grenier - Canada
Joseph Guarino - California, USA
Mark Hedger - Malaysia
Charles Kiss - Florida, USA
Michael Kosut - Poland
Jacek Wendolowski - Poland
Kevin Davenport - Virginia, USA
Sergey Dunaev - Russia
Rasmus Dysted - Denmark
Miguel A. Ruiz Diaz - Colombia
Pietje Van De Ven - Florida, USA
Osama Youssef - Egypt
Ronald Bland - Colorado, USA
John Carlin - United Kingdom
Roberto Parola - Brazil
Nicolle Pratt - Washington, USA
C.E. Sam Rutherford - Missouri, USA
Daniel Schmid - Switzerland
Andrey Golobokov - Russia
William Lamp'l - Florida, USA
David Mansfield - California, USA
Filip Martens - Belgium
Nils Van Der Haar - Mexico
Eric Sperley - Washington USA
If you dream of joining this elite team of dive professionals and want to learn about the 2010 PADI Course Director Training Course, email James Morgan or call 800 729 7234 (US and Canada) or +1 949 858 7234, ext. 2277.
Photo Credit: James Morgan