The DAN internship program was started in 1999 to give qualified candidates valuable experience in dive safety research. 

While the program is still research-oriented, its scope has expanded over the years to include projects that focus on other aspects of DAN’s mission to help divers in need of emergency medical assistance and to promote dive safety through education. 

Today, DAN interns participate in a range of activities including field work, lab studies, outreach, training program development, and other projects that promote dive safety.

Sam Crenshaw is a lieutenant in the U.S. Coast Guard and a divemaster. He earned a B.S. in marine engineering technology from Texas A&M Maritime Academy at Texas A&M University at Galveston. 

Sam’s Coast Guard career has included inspecting commercial vessels in Philadelphia and New Jersey, investigating maritime casualties in Baton Rouge, and being part of a specialized Marine Industry Training Program that focuses on dive and snorkel vessel casualty investigations conducted by the Coast Guard. 

He chose to work with DAN as a part of this program to further understand the intricacies of dive-related incidents and promote the mutual lifesaving safety interests of the U.S. Coast Guard and DAN.

Tyler Horton, a native of Indiana, graduated from the University of Dayton in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in biology and minors in neuroscience and Spanish. Following graduation, she served as the executive director of an international public health nonprofit dedicated to early screening and preventative care for breast and cervical cancer. 

She then spent a year solo backpacking across the globe, checking off bucket list adventures and falling in love with scuba diving along the way. Tyler is thrilled to combine her passion for the underwater world and safety with her background in scientific research as she joins the DAN Research Internship Program this summer.

Anna Krylova is a marine scientist pursuing interests in behavioral ecology, conservation, and innovative storytelling. In 2024, she earned her Master of Science in marine biology from Northeastern University, where she investigated humpback whale foraging dynamics along California’s coast for her thesis. 

While in grad school, Anna started pursuing underwater photography and became an AAUS scientific diver, exploring diverse ecosystems in Massachusetts, Panama, Washington, and California. 

She previously completed her B.S. in marine biology with a photojournalism minor at Northeastern, conducting cuttlefish camouflage research at the Marine Biological Laboratory and honing her skills in research and visual storytelling. She is eager to develop her marketing expertise during her internship to help foster stronger connections between the public and our oceans.

Samantha Nosalek is a sophomore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering through the Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering. 

She is a NAUI divemaster with certifications in advanced nitrox and decompression procedures, and she volunteers with SEAKERS, a nonprofit scuba organization based in her hometown of Concord, North Carolina. She looks forward to building a strong foundation in the fundamentals of diving research during her internship.