UNF biology major merges the love of art, science and service 

Jessie Roncevic has always preferred being outdoors and never minded getting muddy. Still, the Jacksonville native admits she never really explored her hometown until she came to the University of North Florida in fall 2021.  

Once she started immersing herself in fieldwork and doing hands-on research at UNF — with help from grants, including the prestigious Platinum Presidential Scholarship — her passion for environmental science was solidified.  

Now the 21-year-old senior and Hicks Honors student is preparing to graduate in August with a bachelor’s in biology with a concentration in coastal environmental science. She is also earning double minors in creative writing and professional and public writing, which has helped her blend her scientific curiosity and her love of storytelling. 

“UNF opened a whole new world to me,” Roncevic said. “Whether I was traveling across the U.S. or just discovering parts of Jacksonville I’d never seen, the experiences I’ve had here have completely changed how I see the world. Looking back, the growth I’ve gone through is immense.”  

Roncevic applied to 17 different universities from Cornell to the University of Rochester and was accepted to many offering full-ride scholarships. However, once she toured UNF and interacted with members of the Hicks Honors College, she knew UNF was the place for her.   

“Everyone was so welcoming and ready to help,” said Roncevic. “Plus, I loved the campus being on a nature preserve and close to home, too.”    

Research and Environmental Impact  

Under the mentorship of former UNF faculty member Dr. Kelly Smith, Roncevic participated in fieldwork on the St. Johns River and later joined Smith’s lab as a paid research technician. There, she worked on rehabilitating Spartina alterniflora found in the marshes along Northeast Florida’s waterways. She contributed to reports for the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission and attended several conferences detailing her work.   

While her research focuses on restoring local ecosystems, equally important to Roncevic is her commitment to environmental stewardship beyond the marshes and into the heart of her community.   

With the guidance of Jennie Ziegler, associate instructor for UNF’s Writing Program and Center, and a $2,500 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) grant she received last year, Roncevic has been able to continue a project she started in high school.   

“Jennie helped me structure and pinpoint my direction with the Traveling Magic Seed Library (TMSL), a free seed library project I started in high school, which offers heirloom and organic plant and vegetable seeds to people throughout Jacksonville,” said Roncevic.   

“For most of my life I lived in an apartment with my mother and grandmother and had to learn to be creative with soil and growing plants and vegetables indoors,” she explained. “Since moving to a house a few years ago, I’ve been able to transform my front and back yards into a food forest — learning how to build my own soil and growing tomatoes, peppers, flowers and trees. Something I want to pass on to others.”   

In addition to working in Dr. Smith’s lab, Roncevic worked as a volunteer in Dr. Scott Jones’s WE-ECO lab as a volunteer and then transitioned into a paid lab technician summer 2024 where her work focused on water quality monitoring stations and is currently focused on soil sampling. She received her second $2,500 SURF scholarship again this summer to study coastal resiliency and carbon stocks around Northeast Florida, including Pablo Creek and the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR).    

“What has impressed me the most about Jessie’s fieldwork and research is her vision for the project and her ability to get the work done,” said Jones, assistant professor of biology. “She’s been working on a database of soil carbon stocks from coastal wetlands in the region, which requires grueling field days collecting soil cores — pushing a steel barrel up to 1 mile down into the soil and then pulling it back out again to collect samples — all while covered in mud, capturing analysis in the lab and working with the data to make figures.”  

That same determination and hands-on approach were evident in another standout project that Roncevic considers one of her most meaningful.   

“One of my proudest projects was restoring Spartina alterniflora at Kingsley Plantation,” said Roncevic. “We helped deploy and monitor Spartina alterniflora to restore eroded marsh edges. The project involved collecting dislodged Spartina from mudflats, bringing them to the UNF rooftop greenhouse, and nurturing them until they were ready to be replanted in their original habitats.”  

Building on her restoration efforts, Roncevic took on a one-year global leadership role in February 2024, that broadened her impact beyond Northeast Florida.    

It started through a collaboration with UNF biology professor Dr. Cliff Ross on a project through the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. As team lead, Roncevic coordinated communication with Smithsonian scientists, collected litter samples from A1A beaches, and documented associated organisms. The data she and her team provided is being used in a forthcoming publication, with the UNF team receiving formal credit.  

Where Science Meets Art  

As an artist from an early age, Roncevic’s academic path at UNF is a blend of science and art. A pivotal moment came during a Scientific Illustration course with biology lecturer Dr. Amy Keagy, where she drew plants and animals around UNF’s Lake Oneida — her favorite spot on campus.   

“Dr. Keagy’s class was transformative — a turning point for me,” said Roncevic. “It allowed me to merge my love for science with my love for art and gave me another outlet to hone my skills.”   

For students like Roncevic, Keagy said integrating art and science is an important visualization tool that helps translate challenging scientific concepts to the public.    

“Scientific illustrations are another tool scientists use to communicate,” said Keagy. “Jessie came to class with a natural proclivity for scientific illustration, and with her art background, was able to see the connection and importance for scientific accuracy and the natural beauty of the living organisms she is so passionate to study.”  

A Myth Making course taught by associate instructor and Assistant Director of the Hicks Honors Program Will Pewitt introduced her to the world of science and philosophy. She also served as teaching assistant to Pewitt. A Creative Fiction Workshop taught by English Instructor Marcus Pactor helped Roncevic refine her writing and led to short story she wrote being publication in Pandion, the student Osprey Journal of Research and Ideas.    

Pewitt recalls Roncevic being a “standout” from day one.   

“Jessie isn’t just memorable — she’s compelling and galvanizing in the classroom,” said Pewitt. “She’s an absolute paragon of what an Honors student can be at UNF. She leads by listening deeply, intentionally, and without ego, and that’s what makes her not just a strong TA, but the kind of mentor students instinctively trust. She earned a TA spot with me her first year.”   

For these reasons and more, Roncevic received the “Luminary” award last year from the Honors College.  

“Jessie’s the type of person you want in the room when many voices need to be heard or many goals are creating confusion — she grounds the group, offers perspective, and kindly nudges the conversation toward clarity,” said Pewitt. “She takes notes like a scholar, but more importantly, she listens like a friend. It’s that combination that makes people—students, faculty, administrators—keep wanting to work with her.”  

In addition, Roncevic contributed to the UNF Shakespeare & Theatrical Production as a stage manager, scriptwriter, set designer and poster artist for the 2024 multi-lingual adaptation of Othello. Roncevic said creating the poster for the production challenged her artistic skills and pushed her out of her comfort zone.  

“That’s what I enjoy the most,” explained Roncevic. “Stepping outside my little world and experiencing something different.” 

Despite the demands of her research and academic workload, Roncevic finds time to engage in campus life as well. She serves as secretary of the UNF Wetlands Club, helping to plan outings, camping trips, organizing guest speakers and more.   

One of her most memorable events at UNF was meeting renowned ecologist and scientific illustrator Dr. Candy Ilka Feller, known as the “Mangrove Queen”— twice.  

She also participated in a children’s reading session at A Brush With Nature, as part  of a long-standing partnership between UNF and the Jacksonville Arboretum and joined Unidos in Honors, a Hicks Honors College interest group.   

Looking Ahead  

Soon after graduation in August, Roncevic will head to Villanova University to begin her fully funded master’s program in wetlands ecology where she was offered a  graduate teaching assistantship. However, she will still have her feet in the mud in North Florida — at least quarterly – as she continues wetlands research with the ‘WETFEET’ project in the Palencia area of St. Johns County. She will also continue her love of art. 

For Roncevic, UNF has been more than a university; it’s been a launchpad for the future. As the first in her family to graduate from college, her family is proud of how far she has come.  

The advice she tells others is not to be afraid to ask questions or seek help. The connections she made at UNF, the mentors who guided her, and the experiences she embraced helped her grow into a confident researcher, communicator and leader.  

“My four years at UNF have been transformative,” said Roncevic.