Climbing the career ladder through internships

Internships represent the first rung on the career ladder and for the 10 summer interns at Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF), the program structure provides far more than on-the-job skills. The benefit for these young professionals and the SURF organization creates opportunities for promoting career-stage diversity in South Dakota.

“It is the professional responsibility of SURF and all professionals to continue to pass down their trade to the next generation. Providing with it the history and traditions and everything that goes with being part of a professional community,” said Chad Ronish, SURF science education specialist and internship program coordinator. “So, this is our chance to give back to that next generation.”

The structure of the program gives interns both an overview of the facility and in-depth exploration of their field of interest. The 10-week program combines hands-on experience, targeted mentorships, project planning, and everyday business conversations from SURF professionals at all levels of their own careers.

Ronish praised the benefits of bringing in early-career professionals to SURF for the summer. “It’s a chance to recharge your batteries because [the interns] have such optimism and hope and desire about the future.”

For the first two weeks in May, interns toured the surface and underground, meeting with experts from each department. Providing an insight into all areas of the SURF organization serves as a key component to the internship program, enabling young professionals to understand how the variety of professions play a part in the overall operation of America’s deep underground laboratory.

Next, interns spent eight weeks with a specific department, diving into their fields of interest. While all positions at SURF connect in some way to the science happening deep beneath the Black Hills, the variety of internships and the funding sources for them expand the diversity of career opportunities with SURF.

Interning in the search for dark matter

Ellie Breidenbach was just the second recipient of the Jack Headley STEM Internship. Created in memory of John "Jack" Headley, the internship supports undergraduate students seeking to work in STEM fields, giving priority to underrepresented groups in South Dakota.

As a student from South Dakota Mines, Breidenbach participated in the Davis-Bahcall Scholar program at SURF in 2022. This year, she utilized her physics education to focus on the search for dark matter servicing the LZ experiment.

“Scientists from all around the world who work on LZ came and shared the work that they were doing,” said Breidenbach of the collaborative event hosted at SURF. “It’s crazy how much work goes into one experiment.  It’s so amazing to see all these different types of people come together and work towards that common goal.”

Erik Allen, a recipient of one of the Dave Bozied Internships, also worked with the LZ dark matter experiment. Based in the Davis Campus on the 4850 level of SURF, his internship allowed him to work with the scientists conducting research and participate in the transfer of liquid xenon during the calibration of the LZ detector.

“It was a cool experience to kind of view what all goes into what was essentially taking one gas from one place and moving it to another place. It requires a lot of setup and forethought for executing.” Allen supported the injection, removal, and movement of gases used to determine the effectiveness of the detector’s sensors.

A recent graduate from Augustana University in Sioux Falls, Allen will take the next steps in his career this fall as a science teacher at St. Thomas More High School in Rapid City. When asked about how he will convey his science work at SURF to his classroom of students, Allen reflected on the structure and processes that scientists use to plan and maintain the experiments.

“A lot of science, and especially experimental physics, [scientists] have to put a lot of thought into what they’re doing. It’s not so much deciding to do something and doing it right away. You have to put some thought into it beforehand and make sure that, ‘Okay, am I going to mess this up?’”

Black Hills State University interns work beyond science 

The 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.

Ashley Beguin, a graphic design student at Black Hills State University, also received her internship funding from this program and spent her time supporting the Communications Department at SURF. The variety of visual projects during her time at SURF often took her underground through the drifts to study and photograph the work happening at SURF.

“I’ve always been kind of interested in science. I wanted to learn more about the facility, but I didn’t know the impact and how big it actually was here.” As part of Beguin’s internship, she captured a variety of photographs of the wide range of infrastructure at SURF.

In presenting her photographs, she spoke to the processes and creative skills she acquired during her 10-week internship. “Low light photography was something that I didn’t have a lot of experience in and I wanted to grow with that. Working with this team has helped my critical thinking and critiques. I do like constructive criticism.”

Megan Gisi, a student at Black Hills State University and one of two recipients of the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Internship, enhanced her studies as part of the SURF Education and Outreach Department. Her goals carried through her 10-weeks of outreach at SURF.

“I wanted to gain confidence in my professional ability, to experience a new environment, to learn from past and current educators, and to learn about curriculum development.” Gisi especially called out her opportunity to work in an industry beyond her academic pursuits. “I never would have seen myself in a professional environment like this, or in a science lab for sure. I have been screaming off the rooftops about how cool it is to work here.”

Her experience at SURF led to one of her significant projects from her internship – a video supporting the idea that everyone can relate to science. “I got a reinvigorated love for education, which is probably the biggest takeaway. Our message was that we want to share with people that anybody can do science. Science should be accessible to any student.”

Ethan Johnston, also a student of Black Hills State University and an EPSCoR Internship recipient, partnered with Gisi on the production of the video. As an elementary education student, Johnston also prioritized his engagement with the professional development programs facilitated by the Education and Outreach Department at SURF.

“To be able to see these teachers that were so excited about improving their teaching skills, and becoming better teachers,” Johnston exuded, “that really inspired me. I think this is really going to change the way, even while I’m still in school, I approach teaching.”

The Education and Outreach Department at SURF provides professional development programs year-round and offers both in-person and virtual opportunities. Johnston joined in three weeks of online professional development during his 10-week program, plus one on-site session. His highlight of the hour spent online? “Being able to network with all the teachers and learn from them, and I really felt like I was treated like a professional.”

Chris Bauer Internships build engineering opportunities

In honor of the late SURF electrical engineer, Chris Bauer, the Bauer family has supported engineering internships at SURF since 2014. This year, two interns joined SURF with the Chris Bauer Internships.

Luke Lichtenberg, a mechanical engineering student at SD Mines, tapped into a wide range of projects throughout SURF, including the vast dewatering system. “I got to tour all of the pump rooms down below and also did an oil change with some maintenance crews on the 5000-Level pump.”

The dewatering system moves water from depths below the 4850 Level, keeping the ground water flow directed, and the science facilities dry. Understanding the overall option led to two of Lichtenberg’s contributions this summer.

“I got to see all of that process and then tour the wastewater treatment plant. We wanted to get an easy-to-read diagram that we could show the public to show how the water flows in, how we bring it back up, then over to the wastewater treatment plant.” Lichtenberg also helped construct a 3D version to help kids experience the entire process for SURF’s annual Neutrino Day science festival. “Just a really great experience and then being able to see the kids interact with it on Neutrino Day.”

Jackson Busch, a mining engineering student at SD Mines, also joined SURF as part of the Chris Bauer Internships. Busch spent time supporting the dewatering system, but also worked extensively with the underground ventilation system.

“Air sensors track the air flow. They’re dirty. There’s an air door on the 2000 Level. I got to help chip out the rock. We’re doing ventilation surveys.” The list of tasks Busch supported included documenting changes underground due to the current excavations for the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility and Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (LBNF/DUNE). “We take out points from the little surveys and we put them on a map to make sure everything’s good.”

Internships expand beyond underground

For the first time in 2023, SURF partnered with Boxelder Job Corps and the South Dakota Department of Labor to offer an internship opportunity in a vital aspect of SURF’s operations: facilities support.

Shot’e Snell, an electrician apprentice working towards becoming a licensed journeyman, became an integral part of the Surface Operations & Utilities supporting fiber optic and traditional wire installation.

“Every day was something different. I could have been underground or down at the Visitor Center.” Snell worked on a specific project for the Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center that required special permits, but also a unique learning opportunity towards his career.

“My objective was to get power to the storage shed. We started to dig a trench for the conduit and go from the junction box to the storage shed. We had to go to one of the manholes. I filled out a confined space permit. We ran wires from inside the Visitor Center to the junction box which ran underground.” First-hand experience for Snell during his internship will provide better facilities for the staff and visitors at SURF.

Conner Curran, another Dave Bozied intern and a 2023 graduate of Belle Fouche High School, spent his summer immersing himself in what he described as a “day-in-the-life” experience. Curran’s additional focus was on the first steps to a career in Information Technology from his team members.

“My second goal was to get some networking information from some of the networking people here. [They] showed me the programs to manage our network, builds our network, and some of the stuff actually made to automate the process.”

Starting out as a shadow to the Help Desk, he began working independently part way through his 10-week internship. “I saw a lot of cool things I didn’t think I would see. Towards the end, I actually got to do a lot of stuff on my own.”

In another first for SURF, a partnership with the South Dakota Space Grant Consortium funded Emily Siemonsma in an internship supporting two departments: Education and Outreach and Engineering. The effort allowed her to work directly with Steve Gabriel, a teacher at Spearfish High School, and the SURF engineers, balancing her studies in education and technical skills.

“He has a system of underground flow meters that send ventilation data like temperature, wind, or airflow.” Siemonsma followed up her data collection in the school environment at Spearfish High School. “I got to attach pressure sensors, the temperature probe, all of the things to his data logger, and then go through Campbell Scientific—a website to see what the data is reading.”

The combination of opportunities helped Siemonsma align her career plans. “I really want to teach data science, so I think this has given me a good start to figure out how kids can think about data.”

Growth for future interns

Ronish shared his enthusiasm for the benefits of seeing the interns thrive through their summer opportunities. “We can talk about the endless possibilities they have for their career and for their life and they get to see that and experience it.”

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.

“As a teacher, you’re always trying to think about what they can do, not necessarily about what they think they have the ability to do, but what the options are, what possibilities are out there.  We’re here at a place that has endless opportunities and future for [them] and these are the [individuals] here looking for that.” Ronish continues to provide educational resources to SURF interns through the structured program every summer.

As the interns return to their career development, Ronish reflected on the group who spent the past 10-weeks at SURF. “The most unique thing about this group was the incredible, diverse backgrounds and interests that they brought in. I think our teams thought very critically about who they brought in.”

Ronish is already looking ahead to the 2024. Applications are typically due in January of the year of the internship. For more information, visit the SURF internship information webpage. By the end of 2023, for another group of young professionals, the process to apply begins, leading to the chance to experience a wide range of opportunities.

For SURF, “It’s really an investment in our future,” Ronish said.