Undergraduate Research
Welcome to the Office of Undergraduate Research
Congratulations to the October Undergraduate Researcher Akane Bangay!
Akane Bangay walked into her first research lab without knowing her professor, and two years later, she is a published chemist who would “rather be in the lab than in lecture”.
Bangay, a UNF chemistry student, did not plan any of it. She grew up in a military family, moving so often she said she attended double digits of schools around the globe. She landed in St. Augustine for her senior year of high school, then went to cosmetology school and learned she did not want to be a hairdresser. "I was like, chemistry. Hair chemistry. Let's full send," Bangay said. She said she did not know students could start college undeclared, so she chose chemistry because it was loosely related. Then she took General Chemistry 1. "I was like, yeah, this is where I need to be," Bangay said.
Research came by accident. In spring 2025, she was one credit short of full-time and could not think of a lecture to add. A professor told her research could fill the gap, but she had no idea how to start.
"It's scary, going up to your professors," Bangay said. She had never taken a class with Dr. Willis Jones and had never met him. She picked him because he was the only analytical chemist she knew of doing research. "I just cold emailed Dr. Jones and was like, hey, I need a credit," Bangay said.
He invited her to office hours, and she said it worked out from there.
In the year since, she has worked on three projects and helped publish a paper. "Everybody keeps telling me that's a really big deal," Bangay said. "I was like, parents, everybody come look at my paper." According to Photonics, the paper measures lithium in brine solutions using a laser-based instrument, and she and Jones are among its authors from UNF's Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. "I shoot lasers at these guys," she said. Akane has given four poster presentations, including at the Florida Undergraduate Research Conference.
She said research is nothing like a teaching lab, where the manual lays out every step.
"Research is like, we have a general idea of what we need to do. This is our goal. Let's figure out how to get there," Bangay said. "Research will hold your hand, but you have to get competent."
She described Jones as serious but approachable, and said he reminds her and a lab partner about deadlines and graduate school applications. "He's honestly a great PI," Bangay said.
The lab has also given her a path toward forensic science, something she has been fascinated with since she was a kid. "I want to be given a sample and tell you what that sample is," Bangay said. "It kind of just feels like I'm playing scientist lite."
She almost left before finding any of it. Bangay said her mother moved to Germany during her freshman year, and she considered switching to psychology and finishing online to join her. Then chemistry took over, and she stayed.
"You are where you need to be and it's worth being here," Bangay said, when asked what she would tell her freshman self. Her advice to other students is to take the same leap. "Guys get into research. I promise, it's so great," Bangay said. "Professors are actually nice."
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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