Sanford Underground Research Facility's 2021 summer interns. Back, left to right: Nathan Tysdal, Daniel Rynders, Kennedy Teeslink, Victor Hernandez Chinos. Front, left to right: Jessica Peterson, Kassandra Herding, Elliott Keller, Serenity Engel. Not pictured: Damon LaCroix.
Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) welcomed nine summer interns, inviting them to explore a career in their chosen field during the ten-week program.
“For Sanford Lab, internships are an investment in the future,” said Peggy Norris, deputy director for Education and Outreach (E&O) at SURF. “A strong STEM workforce in South Dakota is crucial for the future health of the lab and its workforce. For the students, internships are an important component of their education and an opportunity to learn important life and work skills. This year, the students were able to be onsite most of the time, which was especially beneficial since in 2020, most internship opportunities nationwide were cancelled or moved to virtual.”
Jack Headley STEM Internship
Victor Hernandez Chinos was the first recipient of the Jack Headley STEM Internship. In 2021, the internship was created in memory of John "Jack" Headley, to support undergraduate students seeking to work in STEM fields and give priority to underrepresented groups in South Dakota.
During his intern presentation, Hernandez described himself as “a husband, a dad and a non-traditional student with a Mexican background” and thanked the Headley family for creating the internship. Hernandez is studying industrial engineering and engineering management student at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SD Mines) and belongs to the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers.
This summer, he worked with the Quality Assurance, Quality Control Department. There, he gained practical experience in writing technical reports and communicating with other departments. “Interning at SURF provided the experience necessary to excel as an engineer,” he said. For Hernandez, the biggest takeaway was learning to “build quality into the process” from the start of every project.
Dave Bozied Internships
Dave Bozied internships, which are funded by the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority (SDSTA) and named for the former SDSTA board member Dave Bozied, provide internships in physics, chemistry, geology, engineering, science education and communications.
Two students from SD Mines, Jessica Peterson, chemical engineering, and Serenity Engel, physics, worked with the Science Department; Kassandra Herding, industrial engineering and engineering management at SD Mines, worked with the Environment, Safety and Health Department; and Damon LaCroix, graphic design student at Black Hills State University (BHSU), worked with the Communications Department.
Engel spent most days of her internship underground with the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) dark matter experiment. “Sanford Lab has been a very active presence in my life. And it's been my childhood dream to work here. So it's really cool that I got to see it all come together,” Engel said.
With the communications team, LaCroix created marketing and design materials for the annual Neutrino Day science festival. “Working on small projects helped me develop my skills in other areas that I had trouble in, and that helps me apply those to other jobs,” LaCroix said. “Everything I have learned at SURF isn't just about designing; it's also about working and growing your understanding of what a client is looking for when putting together their vision.”
Chris Bauer Internships
The Bauer family has supported engineering internships at SURF since 2014. The internships honor of the late SURF electrical engineer, Chris Bauer. This year, two SD Mines students received the internships: Daniel Rynders, engineering, worked with the Engineering Department, while Nathan Tysdal, mining engineering, worked with the Underground Access Department.
Rynders described one of his internship assignments: move a forklift from the foundry on the surface of the facility to the Davis Cavern on the 4850 Level. “Anywhere else, moving a forklift would have been super easy,” Rynders said. “But SURF provides a very unique set of challenges and opportunities you don’t get anywhere else.”
For Rynders, those challenges included navigating narrow drifts, stringent cleanliness protocols and a mile deep shaft. But Rynders didn’t undertake the task alone. SURF’s engineers, who face these unique challenges every day, coached him and gave feedback on the task.
Rynders said the preparation for the move was “a marathon of redesign,” and described how the forklift was loaded, transported to the headframe, secured in the shaft, moved through the drifts and meticulously cleaned then lowered through a narrow opening to the bottom floor of the Davis Cavern. “It was really incredible to work through those challenges that are unique and think about the problem from start to finish and every step in between,” Rynders said.
EPSCoR Internships
Two education interns spent their summer with the E&O team at SURF. These internships are supported by South Dakota Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). Elliott Keller and Kennedy Teeslink, both pursuing degrees in education at BHSU, worked with the E&O team to create professional development programming for South Dakota educators and prepare curriculum units for the upcoming school year.
Keller appreciated that SURF promoted education as a part of its core mission and vision. “I was kind of tickled to learn that SURF’s mission statement and their vision statement have strong connections to education. It is an integral part of this establishment,” Keller said.
Teeslink shared a photo of her notebook, which was filled with notes from the professional development programs. “I made this section called ‘Future Ken,’ and I'm going to open it at the start of the [school] year, and I wrote reminders to myself of everything I learned,” Teeslink said.
About internships at SURF
Through SURF’s competitive internship program, students gain real-world experience that propels them toward a career in their chosen field. Internships help students figure out what they want to do and give them the opportunity to work with people from around the world in a unique environment.
Applications are typically due in January of the year of the internship. For more information, visit our SURF internship information webpage.
