About Us

Reef Expeditions Founder, CEO and Course Instructor. Since 1987, scuba diving has been a major part of his life. After seeing the loss of several reefs to climate change, he has made it his life mission to save the remaining reefs before it is too late. As a PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer with a wide variety of dive certifications, he has trained many new divers and tried to implant a sense of responsibility upon each one of his students to be stewards of the reefs, to help facilitate a change in public behavior. As a keeper at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden for nearly 25 years, he continually educated zoo guests about habitat loss and wildlife conservation efforts. As the Team Leader of Manatee Springs and Diving Programs for 14 years, he worked in a leadership capacity with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to rehabilitate 15 Florida manatees. James holds a B.S. in Biology from the University of Cincinnati (UC), with a focus in Coral Reef Ecology. His doctoral work is in Educational Studies with a focus on coral reef education and citizen science.

Jamie Green consults with organizations on strategic planning, policy development, non-profit formation, marketing and fundraising.  She has served on the board of several organizations whose mission touches conservation, public education, helping individuals or families in need or serving those with developmental disability. She is a PADI certified Dive Master with decades of diving and underwater photography experience.

Dr. Hays Cummins is an emeritus professor in the Western Program and Geography at Miami University. He is a founding Co-Director of Project Dragonfly and served as the science editor for Dragonfly magazine. Dr. Cummins received his Ph.D. in oceanography from Texas A&M University and has led international courses to the Bahamas, the Netherlands Antilles, Belize, Australia, Nambia and Costa Rica. His research focuses on the reconstruction of past ecological communities in marine systems and understanding ecological change. He also has a passion for coral reef ecology, ecological restoration, conservation, climate change, astronomy and photography. Hays has authored many research papers and popular articles focusing on science and science education. Recent publications include a synthesis article on beavers, an article on coral reef disease on the Great Barrier Reef, and two books, one focusing upon Bahamas birds and the other on coral reef fish.

Mr. Daoud is Chief Executive Officer of the Chili House Restaurant Brand with over thirty-six locations in six countries. Recipient of the International Business Star Award, by the European Union BID Organization, for establishing one of the first Middle Eastern Franchise Brands, he is skilled in management, strategic planning, marketing strategy, business strategy, and leadership. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Economy from University of Cincinnati and a Juris Doctorate Degree in Law from John Marshall Law School. Mr. Daoud is focused on leaving an environmentally clean world where people can enjoy the oceans, lakes, and rivers for generations to come.

Dr. Grossman, originally from New York City; received his Ph.D. (Physiology-Endocrinology) from the University of Cincinnati in 1977. He is currently a Professor, Department of Biology at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Grossman has contributed to countless journals and is a published author. His collaborative arrangements include direct on-site research at the Cincinnati and Columbus zoos in Ohio involving manatee behaviors to acoustical stimuli. Research included off-site acoustical feeds from the Cincinnati Zoo and Columbus Zoo and from Homosassa Springs Animal Park, Homosassa Florida and from the Parker Aquarium, South Florida Museum in Bradenton Florida. Dr. Grossman is also an active member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Association of University Professors.

Dr. Allison Calhoun is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at Whitman College with a focus on Physical Chemistry. She earned her undergraduate degree in biology education and her doctorate in chemistry from the University of Georgia. Over the past four years, she developed a new research agenda connecting her love of calcium carbonate with the mechanisms by which corals precipitate their skeletons. After completing diving certification through PADI and the AAUS she led two field work expeditions to the island of Moorea in the French Polynesian islands.  The samples collected during these trips are currently under investigation in the laboratory via multiple techniques including Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (DRIFTS), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC).  The combination of these analyses are leading to a greater understanding of how corals create their exoskeleton.