Hi Matthew,
Welcome to the board. I'm not too far from you (Hilliard area)
There are a couple of quarries in Ohio you might try. Circleville is the closest from here. It's shallow (20 feet) so it's a good place to practice, try out new gear, etc. Sometimes in the summer I even take a dive there after work because it's only about 45 minutes from the west side of Columbus. If you are into ice diving, I know lots of guys who do that there. Lakeview Park (Lancaster) is also shallow. The viz varies, but there are guidelines laid down that will take you to the different sites.
Portage quarry is my favorite, good viz, easy entry, and nice camping on site. Lots of cool stuff to see. Gilboa is a good place for deep diving. It has a shallow side (around 45-55 feet) and a deep side (up to 130 ft), both stay pretty cold all the time, but the viz is good. Whitestar is a nice state park, excellent viz but they allow fishing in the non-diving side, so there are fewer fish to see than in the other places. Still lots of fun though.
I give you the scoop on the local dive clubs if you want, just let me know.
I've also dove Key Largo three times, and done some spring diving in Florida (Ginnie Springs, Paradise Springs, and Blue Grotto), those are nice places too.
Take care and be safe (both diving and firefighting)
Laura