“I considered a pre-med track as an undergraduate,” she says, “but I also had a minor in British literature. And I’ve always loved writing, from the days when I wrote short stories as a kid to the novel I started to write as an adult. My senior year, the Career Center helped me discover a path I wasn’t even aware of – science writing and, more broadly, science communication. It’s a really exciting, ever-evolving field and I was sold.”

Science communication, Ellice explains, essentially looks to make scientific research more accessible to the masses. “It’s the ability to take complex research and academic papers and translate the information to make it applicable and relevant for the general public, so they can engage in it.”

And she is super clear about her own mission: “I want science to be understood by everyone – not just science majors or people in very specific scientific fields. I want to train and equip researchers to talk effectively about their studies so that people outside of those fields – even fellow scientists – can fully understand their work. (Think Bill Nye the Science Guy or ‘rockstar’ astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson.) And, I want this understanding to lead not just to knowledge, but actionable ideas.”

She also wants ‘The Link’ – the online Alda Center platform she helped establish as an intern early on in her Master’s program and her current main responsibility – to be a portal to achieve those goals. 

“With tips, interviews, videos and podcasts, I’m looking to present diverse voices and content.” Like her personal digital platform –TheNeuroAesthetic – Ellice is also looking to “make science look beautiful and appealing to the newer generation of scientists who will be looking at these types of sources of information. It doesn’t need to be ‘stuffy.’ I like to bring my artistic sensibilities and a feminine perspective to these sites.”

Ellice says the work is exactly what she wants to do and this is exactly where she wants to do it. Her path has had various twists and turns. But all of the support and interdisciplinary opportunities have always been right here, which is why she still makes the trip from Queens, like she did as a commuter student. “The name ‘Stony Brook’ originally appealed to me as The Baby-Sitter’s Club books I used to read had a town by that name,” she laughs. Upon visiting, “It oddly reminded me of Norway too, where my mother was from. But mostly, I loved the vibe and it had the kinds of opportunities I’ve always dreamed of. I am here to stay!”