SCDNR’s 2025 Summer Interns

As the summer starts to wind down and students prepare for their return to the classroom, we’d like to highlight our 2025 class of interns!

These hardworking students spent the summer immersed in various divisions within our agency and helped further SCDNR’s mission to advocate for and steward South Carolina’s natural resources.

Archaeology

From left to right on the top row are Juno Ham, Spencer Smith, Meredith Morningstar, Kate Watson, Sarah Neill, and Evie Martell. From left to right on the bottom row are Alana Overbey and Hope Norris. Image courtesy of Meg Gaillard, SCDNR.

When the Summer 2025 SCDNR Archaeology Internship cohort wrapped up their six-week term on Friday, July 11, the SCDNR Archaeology team hit a 12-year milestone for the program. Since the Summer of 2014, the SCDNR Archaeology team has welcomed over 80 interns from the high school through the PhD level.

If you or someone you know is interested in an internship with the SCDNR Archaeology team, you can find more information about each internship term on the SCDNR Heritage Trust website here. Applications for the Spring 2026 term will open on September 1, 2025.

Learn more about the experiences of the Summer 2025 cohort by reading their blog articles below, which will also be featured in forthcoming editions of South Carolina Wildlife magazine.

The Far-Reaching Roots of Archaeology by Juno Ham
Training to Protect Heritage by Spencer Smith
The Wonders of Experimental Archaeology by Meredith Morningstar
The Benefits of Photogrammetry by Kate Watson
Lessons Learned by Sarah Neill
An Interview with an SCDNR Archaeologist by Evie Martell
Coastal Erosion and Archaeology by Alana Overbey
We are Buttons by Hope Norris

Archaeology interns at the South Carolina State Museum

Marine Resources Division

From left: Coastal Reserves and Outreach Intern Parker Gernon, Mariculture Intern Ethan Jennings, SCORE Intern Marissa Canberg, SCORE Intern Gabby Ziegler, Molluscan Research & Monitoring Section Intern Kaitlyn Cockrell, ACE Basin NERR Research Intern Hannah Malcom, and Coastal Reserves and Outreach Intern Bryan Bright.

Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries

Abigail Cumbee from Ridge Spring, SC, is a junior at Clemson University, pursuing a degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology. Passionate about the outdoors and wildlife, she enjoys scuba diving, hiking, traveling, wildlife photography, hunting, and fishing. She is also interested in fields such as genetics and plans on continuing her education through a master’s degree. This summer she has had the opportunity to assist with the bear hair snare study, banding mourning doves and wood ducks, educational outreach, and much more.

Born and raised in Hampton, SC, Austin McQuire grew up in the country, developing a strong appreciation for working with his hands and cultivating a deep interest in hunting and fishing, influencing his personal and professional life. Austin is passionate about wildlife conservation and is intent on securing a career that will allow him to make a meaningful impact in conserving SC’s natural resources. He is currently studying Wildlife Biology at Clemson University. He has been inspired by Tom Harkins and other DNR personnel during his internship at Bonneau Ferry WMA and other areas of Berkeley County. According to Tom, “it’s great to have an intern who knows how to turn a wrench.”

Born and raised in Wolverine, Michigan, Quinn Shultz grew up around fishing, hunting, and wildlife management. As the son of a wildlife biologist, he had an early introduction to the conservation life. Quinn brings a variety of knowledge and skills with him from Michigan to Berkeley County, SC, which has helped him jump right in with the heavily agricultural duties of managing dove fields and waterfowl impoundments at Canal and Sandy Beach WMAs respectively. Quinn is a rising senior at Quincy University in Quincy, Illinois. In addition to upland bird hunting and fly fishing, he is passionate about athletics and is a member of the Quincy University baseball team (Go Hawks!). Quinn plans to pursue a career in wildlife management or conservation law enforcement after graduation.

Michael Balthazor is a Junior Environmental Science major at Berry College. He was born and raised in Columbia, SC, and is an Eagle Scout. His hobbies include playing and watching sports, watching movies, and hunting. His favorite part of the summer internship was painting Red-cockaded woodpecker trees.

Liam Gesling was one of the interns at our Webb Wildlife Center. He enjoys hunting, fishing and hiking. He has been able to learn many things during his internship like how to run equipment and attachments for the equipment. He says it has been a great summer working for SCDNR.

Landon Terry is 16 years old and heading into his senior year at Hampton County High School. After high school he would like to get a bachelors in biology. He likes fishing, playing sports, hunting, building stuff, and exploring. He plays soccer for Hampton County High School. Landon says he has enjoyed his time at Webb Wildlife getting to experience how things run.

Jackson Price is from Lexington County, SC. He attends Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, NC. He is currently a junior in the natural resource management program and is also trying to obtain a minor in criminal justice.

CJ Lindler is an undergraduate student going into his senior year at Clemson University. He is studying Wildlife and Fisheries with a minor in Forestry and Biological Sciences. CJ has lived in many different states, but currently resides in Chapin, South Carolina. He is an avid hunter and fisherman and likes to spend his time out on the water or in the woods or watching sports. He is worked as an intern in Region 2, splitting his time between Broad River Waterfowl Area and Marsh WMA. CJ has assisted DNR staff with dove and duck banding, hog trapping, dove field and duck impoundment preparations, as well as other management activities. He plans on graduating Clemson in the Spring of 2026.

Gabe Barbone is a senior at Coastal Carolina University majoring in Sustainability and Coastal Resilience. He has a strong passion for wildlife and conservation and believes protecting our natural environment is extremely important. Gabe tell us “God’s creation is beautiful and it’s our responsibility to care for it.”

Gansen York is 17 and attends Wando High School. He decided to do this internship because of his love for the outdoors and especially duck hunting.

Intern Day 2025

In late June, all of our SCDNR interns got the chance to attend Intern Day at the Marine Resources Division. The day featured a variety of activities, including a Discovery Education trawl, a campus tour with special presentations from MRD interns and biologists, science communication and iPhone photography training led by the CRO Media team, and resume and interview workshops conducted by CRO staff. In total, 27 interns participated, which included 9 WFF interns, 8 Archeology interns, 7 MRD interns, 1 Clemson Extension Intern, and 2 Sea Grant Interns.

SCDNR Blog