Albert Tillman

Albert Tillman (January 16, 1928 – January 16, 2004) was an American educator and underwater diver. He is widely considered to be the father of diving education.

Tillman was born in Los Angeles, California. He became interested in marine and underwater life when, at age 10, he peered through a pair of goggles in the waters off Redondo Beach, California. He soon became a free diver and served in the United States Coast Guard at the end of World War II, where he had the opportunity to dive around the world. He attended the University of Southern California on a football scholarship and earned a bachelor's degree in public administration. He later earned additional degrees in Recreation Management.

Tillman and Bev Morgan developed the world's first public skin diving and SCUBA diving program while working for Los Angeles County, California in 1953. Tillman became a professor at California State College in Los Angeles (now California State University at Los Angeles) in 1956, and created the first university degree program in recreation and leisure studies, retiring in 1994. He also co-founded the Underwater Photographic Society with Zale Parry.

He opened the world's first dedicated dive resort, The Underwater Explorers Society (UNEXSO) in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island. The resort included a full staff of instructors, a dive store, restaurant, museum, science lab, pools, photographic labs, and a fleet of boats, and catered to millionaires, movie stars, politicians, and royalty.

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