Undergraduate Research
Welcome to the Office of Undergraduate Research
Congratulations to the November Undergraduate Researcher Sydney Rodriguez-Jaume!
Sydney Rodriguez-Jaume walked into an honors colloquium as a freshman who loved math and art, and three years later, she is using maps to compare nuclear test craters in Nevada with craters on the moon.
Rodriguez-Jaume, a UNF Environmental Science senior, said it was Dr. Christopher Baynard who first introduced her to geographic information systems (GIS) in their freshman year honors colloquium class. “GIS combined math and art, which are two things I really loved,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. “He has been training me for the past three years.”
She did not jump in with confidence. Rodriguez-Jaume said she knew GIS was something she wanted to do, but she was cautious about whether it was the right fit. “I was just so uncertain,” she said of the learning curve when it came to learning the GIS systems. She describes herself as introverted and shy, with her guard up around new people. With Baynard, that changed. “I learned to keep my guard down when I’m around him because I started feeling comfortable,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. “First it was technical professional. Now it’s pretty much just casual mentor, mentee.” “I’ve definitely called him dude or bro on accident,” Rodriguez-Jaume joked.
That project began in January 2025 in the Yucca Flat in Nye County, Nevada. According to Rodriguez-Jaume, every crater there is manmade, formed by nuclear weapons testing that lasted into the 1990s. She and Baynard are counting craters in an equally sized area on the moon to see which has more. If their hypothesis holds, she said, it will put into perspective how environmental stewardship is being carried out on Earth right now. Rodriguez-Jaume said the work is more than making a map look good. “Cartography is both an art and a science,” she said. First comes the science, compiling and analyzing the data, then plotting it on the map. Then comes the art. “You can be the artist and design the map to fit the purpose,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. If she wants Florida to stand out, she makes Florida pop, but not with too many colors. “It’s an overall balance.”
She has presented the first phase at the Fall 2025 U-GLIDE Symposium and the Spring 2026 Florida Undergraduate Research Conference. She hopes to submit a paper to a journal before she graduates. She also credits research with teaching her to write everything down. According to Rodriguez-Jaume, her research notebook gives her a primary source to check her project timeline.
Outside the lab, Rodriguez-Jaume is a member of the Hicks Honors College and UNF Kappa Alpha Omicron Chi Chapter. She said joining KAO was the best decision she has made because she can collaborate with peers in environmental science. “Find what you love and, most importantly, find your people,” Rodriguez-Jaume said.
She is also part of UNF THRIVE, the program for students with autism, and said she is proud to be neurodivergent. She is the first openly neurodivergent Undergraduate Researcher of the Month, and the first from UNF THRIVE to earn the title. “I’m trying to break barriers,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. “That’s a big, big win.” For students who are neurodivergent and want to try research, she has a message. “You’re more capable than you think,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. “You just gotta ask around and put yourself out there.” When asked what she would tell freshman Sydney, her answer was three words. “You’re gonna love it,” Rodriguez-Jaume said. “It’s gonna be so rewarding.”
After graduation, she plans to work as a GIS analyst for a government organization or agency.
The 2026 Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year
Congratulations to Dr. Indika Kahanda, associate professor of computing at the University of North Florida, on being named the 2026 Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year! Kahanda was nominated by Ella Luedeke, who wrote in her nomination letter that he played a tremendous role in her success. When asked to describe his mentoring philosophy, Kahanda said that he “balances structure with freedom, guidance with independence, and rigor with encouragement. By creating inclusive, scaffolded, and authentic research experiences, I aim to help undergraduates not only acquire technical skills but also develop confidence, curiosity, and a lasting identity as researchers.”
The Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year award, which consists of a plaque and monetary prize, was presented as part of the Spring 2026 UNF Student Research Symposium on Friday, April 24, in the John A. Delaney Student Union.
Congratulations, Dr. Kahanda, on this well-deserved honor and achievement!
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