Davis-Bahcall Scholars reflect on 2022 program

Where could a career in STEM take you? Each year, Sanford Underground Research Facility's (SURF) Davis-Bahcall Scholars Program helps eight rising university freshmen and sophomores who are entering STEM fields develop an understanding of just where their passions for science, technology, engineering and math could take them.

“The Davis-Bahcall program introduces students to a variety of STEM disciplines and can be helpful to them in deciding on their major in college,” said program coordinator Brianna Mount, associate professor of physics at Black Hills State University (BHSU).

In 2022, scholars said the experience gave them insight into the real world of modern research.

“Going into the program, I didn’t know what a physicist’s or engineer’s job looked like, day to day,” said Ellie Breidenbach, a senior at Sioux Falls Roosevelt High School and 2022 Davis-Bahcall Scholar. “But getting to talk to so many researchers in so many different fields with different labs and companies—I have a much better understanding of what I’m going to be doing, and it makes me even more excited to be going into this field.”

On their South Dakota circuit, the students toured the surface and underground of SURF in Lead; 3M in Aberdeen; the Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (EROS) and Raven Industries in Sioux Falls; and physics, chemistry, engineering, geology and animal science research laboratories at Augustana University, BHSU, South Dakota Mines, South Dakota State University and University of South Dakota.

Outside of South Dakota, the group visited the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, University of Minnesota, and the IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In Chicago, scholars stopped at the Museum of Science and Industry, the Art Institute, the Field Museum and the Adler Planetarium.

The group also learned about the importance of communicating science to the general public when they volunteered at SURF’s Neutrino Day science festival and met keynote speaker Dianna Cowern, better known by her YouTube moniker, “Physics Girl.”

“The program comes at a point in their education where students are choosing their future career path,” said Mount. “It’s a critical time because they get exposed to many different disciplines and learn early in their education what professionals do every day, whether in science, engineering or another STEM field.”

The group chronicled their adventures on the Davis-Bahcall Scholars Facebook page, sharing photos of their stops at Wall Drug, the Badlands, Spearfish Canyon and around Chicago.

“For me, one of the most impactful parts was being around people who value science and love learning about it as much as I do,” Breidenbach said. “It was really cool to be surrounded by eight people who are as enthusiastic about science and want to have in-depth conversations about things that we're learning.”

At the end of the program, the students gave presentations about their experiences. Kaite Pedneau, a freshman at BHSU and 2022 Davis-Bahcall Scholar, chose to dive into the science of the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), specifically, how the experiment will straddle the fields of particle physics and astrophysics.

“I love physics, and I love astronomy. Putting them together is the coolest thing ever,” Pedeau said. “I presented about how DUNE will give insight to astronomers, telling them where to point their telescopes to see supernovas and study black holes. Seeing the potential that DUNE has to impact astronomy and space study, that was one of my favorite parts of the experience.”

Since 2009, 148 students have participated in SURF’s Davis-Bahcall Scholars Program.

“Each year, I see the students exposed to applications of science education from robotics to engineering to physics to medicine—it helps students see that science isn’t just one box,” said Kristin Rath, a science educator at Spearfish Middle School who was chaperoned the program for three years.

“The students are always excited to go underground at SURF and to visit Fermilab and Argonne, but when we visit other places, you’ll see them become excited or interested in things they hadn’t considered before,” Rath said. “One day, they’ll say, ‘I think I’d like to do this job.’ The next day, they’re saying, ‘Oh, I would love to work in this place!’ Over just a few weeks, I see them grow, getting more excited about science and branching out into new fields.”

This year’s Davis-Bahcall Scholars are Ellie Breidenbach, a senior at Sioux Falls Roosevelt High School; Preston Drew, a senior at Custer High School; Stirling Wallace, a senior at Rapid City Stevens High School; Bailey May, a senior at Bennett County High School; Liam Thomassen, a senior at O’Gorman High School; Kaitlyn Gehrels, a freshman at Augustana University; Katie Pedneau, a freshman at BHSU; and Brody Leisinger, a senior at Highmore-Harrold High School.

What began as a physics-oriented learning experience has evolved to include students from a variety of STEM majors. First PREMIER Bank and the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority are major sponsors of the program. The program is also supported by the South Dakota Space Grant Consortium and BHSU. To learn more, visit the Davis-Bahcall Scholars Program webpage.