SNI Chapter Leadership

Tara Bittner, Chapter President lives in Richmond Hill, Georgia, just outside of Savannah, with her husband, Luke, and their two children, Norah and Ian, who are both SCUBAnauts. She works alongside Luke at his medical practice and enjoys volunteering in her community. When she’s not cheering on her SCUBAnauts, Tara enjoys traveling, music, escape rooms, and spending time with her family—including their four cats and dog.

   Jessica Wertz serves the Savannah Chapter in both science and dive safety roles and helped launch the Savannah Chapter in 2020. She has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Georgia Southern University. Jessica grew up near the beach and has always loved the ocean. She began diving in college and became a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor in 2019. She was certified as an SSI Open Water Scuba Instructor in 2021.

Juli Jacobs, Chapter President, became certified with her daughter in summer of 2021.  When her daughter fell in love with diving they got as much experience as possible in a short time.  From diving springs to Jupiter, the Keys, Cozumel, and even the Cenotes within 6 months, she loves new diving adventures, especially the reefs!  Experiencing what Scubanauts does made her fall in love with the science just as much as the diving and she was anxious to bring Scubanauts to Citrus County.

Amy Black, Science Coordinator, began volunteering when her daughter, Bibiana, joined SCUBAnauts in 2021. Amy has a Master’s degree in Education and worked in the school system in various roles for 14 years before transitioning to the pharmaceutical and medical device industry. She developed a love for diving in the early 2000’s when she got her open water certification. Although she is unable to dive now, she enjoys sharing her daughter’s love for the sport.

Charles Wilson, Chapter President, is a NAUI Divemaster who has been diving since 2001 and has a deep passion for the ocean. When he is not working in business development at BofA, he volunteers as a diver with The Florida Aquarium, contributing more than 1,000 hours to conservation, education, and exhibit support. His daughter, Isabella, began diving at age 14 and quickly developed a love for sharks. She went on to become a NAUI Advanced Open Water diver and joined the SCUBAnauts program in 2026.  In his free time, Charles enjoys family diving trips with Isabella and his fiancée, Paola, who is also a NAUI Advanced Open Water diver. He is committed to strengthening chapter operations, expanding community partnerships, and creating meaningful opportunities for young divers to become confident ocean stewards.

Lauren Twele, Science Coordinator,  is a graduate of The University of Tampa where she studied Marine Science and Biology. Having always been passionate about conservation education and inspiring youth about protecting our ocean habitats, she has worked at several organizations as an informal science instructor including The Florida Aquarium, Tampa Bay Watch, and Seacamp Association, Inc.  Currently, Lauren works as the Education Coordinator at Florida Atlantic University Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, where she facilitates K-12 education programming for the Education and Outreach department.  Lauren was certified as a diver in 2014, and obtained her Divemaster certification in 2021.  Lauren has participated as a Scientist in several SNI trips to Destin and the Florida Keys, and is excited to be involved in more Scubanauts trips in the future!

Victoria Scriven, Science Coordinator, has served as the Tampa Chapter Scientist since 2020, hoping to inspire a love of Oceanography, systems thinking and science diving. She has a bachelor’s degree in Oceanography from Texas A&M University and a Masters from the University of South Florida. Victoria conducted deep-sea research using MBARI’s ROVs to understand and quantify the predator-prey relationships of deep-sea ctenophores and is currently a water quality consultant with Environmental Science Associates. Growing up in the desert of West Texas, Victoria had to find creative ways to get in the water. She became SCUBA Certified in 2010 and has been an instructor since 2026.  When she is not in the water or in the lab Victoria can be found kayaking, painting, camping, volunteering, and spelunking. As a Lead instructor at the Kairuna Institute she spends her time bringing knowledge into motion by mentoring and guiding students who are navigating their way through the college application process, earlier career development and looking for careers in marine science.

Katrina Brooks, Chapter President, became Open Water certified as a birthday present to her husband in 2014. Her oldest daughter, Audrey, and husband joined SCUBAnauts in 2020, shortly after Audrey became Advanced Open Water certified. Katrina joined SCUBAnauts in 2021 with her youngest daughter, Fiona, to support the chapter as Membership Coordinator. Prior to SCUBAnauts, Katrina was highly involved in her daughters’ school PTA, holding various positions, from Vice President and School Liaison to Treasurer. Katrina was active in her husband’s Army unit as Secretary of the FRG during his deployments. When she’s not at work as a Property and Casualty Insurance Agent, or supporting SCUBAnauts, Katrina can be found in the gym or in the kitchen discovering new dishes. 

Michael Brooks, Dive Safety Officer, is a PADI Divemaster and Dive Medical Responder who has been diving since 1996. He joined SNI with his daughter, Audrey, and started volunteering with the Tarpon Springs Chapter in 2020. Brooks served for 8 years in the U.S. Army as a Tactical Radio Operator, served in the U.S. Navy for 4 years as a Submarine Communications Electronics Maintenance Technician, has a Bachelor’s Degree in Technical Management, and works as a Public Safety Communications Specialist.

Reese Hanifin, Science Coordinator, started volunteering with SCUBAnauts in 2019. She teaches Biology, Marine Science, and Zoology Honors at Alonso High School in Tampa, Florida. She began diving in Arizona in 1994 but took a long break, as there are not a lot of oceans in Arizona! She became passionate about the sport again in 2012 after moving to Florida and participating in a Whale Shark research project off the coast of Mexico. Her next goal is Divemaster and Instructor, when she’s off from school in the summers. SCUBAnauts combines Reese’s love of diving, research, conservation, and teaching. Reese has a Masters of Environmental Planning from Arizona State University and worked as an Environmental Planner for large scale engineering projects before changing careers to teaching in 2012.

Buck Moffett, Chapter President, completed his Open Water Certification in February of 2022, and has been involved in Scubanauts with his son, Graham, and his daughter, Sarah, ever since!  Buck holds a B.S. in Biology from Oakland University in Rochester, MI and has a 30+ year career in Human Resources. He currently works for Amazon in Employee Relations. When not working, you can usually find Buck with his family on the water, in the water, near the water, or thinking about the water.  Although both Buck and his wife Rachael are native Michiganders, they reside in Cape Coral, FL with seven of their children still at home.

Laura Morris, Dive Safety Officer has been an active parent within SNI since 2014. She began Scuba diving while in college and has renewed her passion with an active role in SNI that has provided her the opportunity to share it with her son, Zack. Currently, she is providing support within SNI as the Sarasota Chapter Dive Officer and also as a grant writer. She is a graduate of the University of Central Florida with a B.S. in biology and holds an M.S. in restoration ecology from the University of Florida. She has worked as an ecologist throughout Florida for over 20 years and has a broad background in freshwater wetlands and wildlife. Currently she is a reclamation supervisor with Mosaic.

Dr. Sara Williams, Science Coordinator,  joined SNI in 2021 and is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Mote Marine Laboratory in the Coral Health and Disease Program. She completed her PhD in Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology at Northeastern University and her research uses network science and modeling combined with field work and physiological experiments to understand problems facing coral reefs. Dr. Williams learned to SCUBA dive in high school and has since completed certifications up to PADI Dive Master and AAUS Scientific Diver. When not underwater or in the lab, Dr. Williams spends her time spoiling her puppy, Poppy, and exploring the many state parks and beaches in Florida. 

Jesse Madsen, Chapter President, has been open water certified since 1995. Jesse, his wife Lindsay and their two boys have been involved in SCUBAnauts since 2021, the year they moved to Florida. Jesse graduated with a Chemical Engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he competed on the Swim Team and in ROTC Military Excellence Competitions. While serving as a Surface Warfare Officer in the US Navy, he was able to dive in multiple locations around the world. Combining his love for family, service, and marine conservation, Jesse’s goal with SCUBAnauts is to empower the next generation of divers and help them to succeed both in and out of the water.

Stacy Ramsey, Chapter Membership Coordinator,  is a lover of oceanography and marine biology, her background is actually in film and TV production, where she was able to focus on Underwater Cinematography as an Assistant Cameraman in Los Angeles. She received her Open Water  certification back in 1990 through PADI while living in California and moved to Florida in 1998 to work in warmer waters! She met her husband and never returned to CA. Fast Forward to 2020 and her love of all things ocean is now shared with her husband and two teen SCUBAnaut boys. “I wish I would have found a program like SCUBAnauts when I was growing up. The knowledge, leadership and connections are invaluable for all professions in life. The ability to learn, conduct and submit scientific research, participate in meaningful conservation, build bridges and friendships all while diving and doing what I love is an incredible opportunity. How could I not, want to be involved!!!  It’s my pleasure to be here and I look forward to contributing and being part of this wonderful program. I hope you’ll join us!”

Sarah Vinson, ADSO, serves SNI at large in both science and dive safety roles. As an SNI alumni (2015-2019),and native Floridian much of her early life experience was shaped by her time with SNI as a naut. Sarah graduated with a BS in Biology from USFSP in 2020 and then received her MS in Instructional Design and Technology at WIU in 2026. She has worked in a dive capacity at various zoos and aquariums, and as an animal care professional for marine and aquatic species. Now, she works in higher ed spaces as an Instructional Designer and is incredibly passionate about expanding access and opportunities for future marine scientists and nauts.