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Articles by Matthew Burkhart
At 871 years, Smith Creek’s oldest known cypress imperiled
Master’s students Madison Gerdes and Daniel Saydkhuzhin stand beside a tree fitted with a growth-monitoring instrument at Smith Creek’s higher-salinity site. Photo courtesy of Monica Rother. Standing in Smith Creek, a tributary of the Cape Fear River, a bald cypress has weathered nearly nine centuries of change. The tree is at least 871 years old, making it the oldest documented tree in the Wilmington area, and it may even be older.
Commercial fishers ask NOAA to downlist Atlantic sturgeon
Jamie and Paul Lane had expected to spend their week before Christmas fishing for perch in the Albemarle Sound. Instead, restrictions on gillnet use led to them losing an important part of their season. A Dec. 17, 2025, proclamation from the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries restricted gillnets across Management Unit A under the state’s federal permit for protecting endangered Atlantic sturgeon and sea turtles.
Commercial fishers ask NOAA to downlist Atlantic sturgeon
Researchers at the Virginia Commonwealth University Rice Rivers Center pull an Atlantic sturgeon aboard their boat after capturing it in a gillnet for tagging. Photo: Matt Balazik, VCU Rice Center Jamie and Paul Lane had expected to spend their week before Christmas fishing for perch in the Albemarle Sound. Instead, restrictions on gillnet use led to them losing an important part of their season. A Dec.
A rare slow loris may have a much larger population in China than scientists thought
A recent study documented 98 northern pygmy slow lorises living in the wild in Guangxi, China, roughly doubling the country’s known population of the endangered species. The species was previously thought to live almost exclusively in Vietnam and Laos. The northern pygmy slow loris was only identified as a separate species in 2023; physically, it’s plumper, fuzzier, and has a flatter nose than the southern species.
Letter from the editor: Farewell to the paper that shaped me
Where do I even start? I began writing at Technician before I actually started attending NC State in the summer leading up to my freshman year, in my first semester as a Spring Connect student at Wake Tech. Now, over three and a half years, or 1322 days, or 172 articles later, I feel like a completely different person from when I started. Throughout my college experience, Technician has been both my greatest challenge and my greatest teacher.
Justin Gainey hired as men’s basketball coach
NC State officially hired former Wolfpack point guard Justin Gainey as its next men’s basketball head coach, the University Affairs Committee announced Monday. Gainey will replace Will Wade, who left the program last week to return to LSU. The committee voted unanimously to approve Gainey’s employment agreement following a closed session that lasted more than 30 minutes.
Will Witt debates NC State students at Turning Point USA event
Students and community members gathered on Harris Field Monday morning as NC State’s Turning Point USA chapter hosted conservative commentator Will Witt for a “Prove Me Wrong” debate, inviting attendees to challenge his views on a range of political and cultural issues.
Poe Hall lawsuits test NC State’s constitutional duties and PCB accountability
Environmental attorney Bryan Brice has worked on coal ash, Superfund cleanups and contaminated drinking water. He said Poe Hall is different. ”This is literally the worst environmental catastrophe regarding human health that I’ve come across,” Brice said. “Particularly for one building.
As Dabney Hall is renovated, students and faculty ask what’s in the air
The first phase of the Dabney and Cox Hall renovation, a roughly $140 million project expected to stretch through 2028, began last year with abatement and demolition on the seventh and eighth floors. It’s the first major overhaul since the building opened in 1969. NC State says new HVAC, electrical and life-safety systems will make it safer. But critics question why workers disturb known carcinogens with hundreds of students and faculty still inside. “It’s frustrating.
“This is not about money”: plaintiffs seek answers after Poe Hall exposure
When Sandy Alford saw the word “Poe” in a WRAL headline on her phone, she was already halfway to bed. “I was in my pajamas,” Alford said. “I was going into my bedroom to go to bed, and I, for some reason, opened up my phone and leaned against the wall before I turned the lights out, and I looked at the story and I saw Poe Hall. It took my breath away.” The January 2024 story tied a growing cancer cluster to NC State’s education building.
Trask and Stack win student body presidency after Dewberry-Butler disqualification upheld
The Special Review Committee upheld the disqualification of the Dewberry-Butler campaign Friday night, clearing the way for Knox Trask and Hubbard Stack to win NC State’s student body president and vice president races. In a unanimous decision, the committee ruled there was not “clear and convincing evidence” that the Board of Elections acted incorrectly when it disqualified candidates Taquan Dewberry and Ava Butler for violating the Elections Handbook’s bribery rule.
Here’s who voted early in Talley Student Union
A total of 3,419 Wake County residents voted at Talley Student Union’s early voting site Feb. 12-28 for the federal, state and local primary elections. Using North Carolina State Board of Elections data, which includes demographic information for each individual voter, Technician analyzed turnout patterns at the Talley site and compared them with early voters across Wake County and other voting sites located in universities in the state.
Former Pride Center Assistant Director Jae Edwards said no investigation took place in his firing
Former NC State LGBTQ Pride Center Assistant Director Jae Edwards said he was fired less than 24 hours after an undercover video surfaced, without a full investigation or a chance to respond. Faculty advocates argue the University’s response has quelled speech and exposed campus workers to politically motivated attacks at a time when system leaders are reshaping how diversity work operates.
Former Pride Center Assistant Director Jae Edwards said no investigation took place in his firing
Former NC State LGBTQ Pride Center Assistant Director Jae Edwards said he was fired less than 24 hours after an undercover video surfaced, without a full investigation or a chance to respond. Faculty advocates argue the University’s response has quelled speech and exposed campus workers to politically motivated attacks at a time when system leaders are reshaping how diversity work operates.
Dewberry-Butler ticket disqualified after violation hearings hours before elections, appeal forthcoming
Editor’s Note: Jacob Smith is a senior staff writer at Technician whose work for the publication has been temporarily suspended for the duration of student government election campaigns. His work is permitted to resume following the spring campaign and election period. The NC State Student Government Board of Elections disqualified Taquan Dewberry and Ava Butler from the student body president and vice president races on Sunday, following four violation hearings.
NC State Team Helps Moldova Build Agriculture Extension From the Ground Up
By Matthew Burkhart NC State faculty visiting Moldova say the country is on the verge of a major change in its agricultural sector, and they hope a new pilot program in three municipalities will help show what a full extension system could do.
Cooper and Whatley set the scene for November election; key local races decided
Former Gov. Roy Cooper and Michael Whatley, former chair of the Republican National Committee, cruised to decisive primary wins in Wake County on Tuesday as voters also made decisions in key races for Congress, county offices and Raleigh City Council. With all 216 Wake County precincts reporting, Cooper led the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate 94.32% of the vote in the county, 2% higher than the state’s total.
Taquan Dewberry and Ava Butler: Candidates for student body president, vice president
Taquan Dewberry, a third-year studying philosophy and applied education and senate president pro tempore, is running for student body president for the 106th session of NC State’s Student Government. His running mate is Ava Butler, a first-year master’s student studying higher education, an advising graduate assistant in the Poole College of Management and a student senator.
NC State and Raleigh sites confront gaps in Black history memory
In Raleigh, new monuments to Black history are rising on timelines that stretch decades beyond the moments they commemorate. North Carolina Freedom Park, which opened August 2023 and is located next to the state legislature, is one of the newest. The park centers on Black North Carolinians’ struggle for freedom, but its story starts long before the 45-foot steel “Beacon of Freedom” was erected.
Researchers warn AI in mental health settings can give harmful advice
Editor’s Note: This article contains references to suicide, self-harm and eating disorders. As more people turn to artificial intelligence for emotional and mental health support, a new report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) found chatbots can provide guidance on self-harm, suicide, disordered eating and substance use despite built-in safeguards from companies including OpenAI.
Researchers warn AI in mental health settings can give harmful advice
Editor’s Note: This article contains references to suicide, self-harm and eating disorders. As more people turn to artificial intelligence for emotional and mental health support, a new report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) found chatbots can provide guidance on self-harm, suicide, disordered eating and substance use despite built-in safeguards from companies including OpenAI.
Professors say fears of artificial intelligence long predate ChatGPT
Artificial intelligence might feel like a distinctly recent topic, but for some academics, the fears shadowing today’s chatbots have been alive in literature for centuries. “I think one thing people have been very busy doing forever, it seems like, is trying to insist upon a definition of humans that separates us from other things,” Timothy Stinson, an associate professor of English who studies medieval literature, said. For Stinson, that anxiety long predates computers.
Red Line fosters community for international students
A glowing red “SKEMA” sign hangs above the bar at Red Line, casting light over the students inside. On a strip that has steadily lost its bar scene, the small wine and beer shop turned taproom has grown into an unofficial clubhouse for NC State’s international students, especially those from SKEMA Business School. A glowing, neon “Skema” sign hangs above the bar at Red Line. Skema is a French business school that participates in an international exchange program with NC State.
LGBTQ Pride Center assistant director fired after undercover watchdog video surfaces
An assistant director at NC State’s LGBTQ Pride Center is no longer employed at the university after a conservative media watchdog published an undercover video in which he described “finding ways around” restrictions on diversity, equity and inclusion programming in the UNC System.
Alumni file lawsuit against Monsanto over PCB contamination in Poe Hall
A group of NC State alumni, former university employees and family members of deceased students has filed a lawsuit against chemical manufacturer Monsanto and a consulting firm for alleged exposure to toxic materials inside Poe Hall, according to a report from WRAL. Monsanto is a chemical corporation that was founded in 1901, producing durable PCBs for several construction sites to educational buildings in the 20th century.
NC State fans, club sports question use of “State” and logos after internal dispute becomes public
NC State’s long-running debate over logos and wordmarks has shifted into public view after a leaked email about men’s basketball retro uniforms touched off a wave of fan backlash and reopened questions about how the University manages its brand. On Jan. 22, men’s basketball coach Will Wade told listeners on “Locked On Wolfpack” that he liked the 1983 “STATE” throwback jerseys and the classic “slobbering wolf” logo, but he had little control over when they could be used.
New lawsuit alleges NC State failed to prevent breast cancer linked to Poe Hall
A group of former NC State students, faculty and staff filed a lawsuit in Wake County Superior Court alleging long-term exposure to toxic chemicals inside Poe Hall led to breast cancer diagnoses and, in some cases, death. The complaint includes 12 plaintiffs, including two wrongful-death estates. Until recently, the legal conflict surrounding Poe Hall has focused on access to the building for individuals or on gathering potential evidence.
Fayetteville woman found sleeping in Chancellor Howell’s home, charged with burglary
A homeless woman from Fayetteville was arrested early Sunday morning after police found her inside NC State Chancellor Kevin Howell’s residence. NC State University Police responded Sunday morning around 8:45 a.m. to a report of an intruder sleeping inside 1570 Main Campus Dr., NC State’s official Chancellor’s Residence, according to Lauren Barker, senior media relations strategist at NC State.
Monks on viral “Walk for Peace” pass through Raleigh
Orange-robed Buddhist monks, some only with socks protecting their feet, walked up Fayetteville Street on Saturday as freezing wind whipped through downtown Raleigh and the first drops of a winter storm began to fall. By the time they reached the North Carolina State Capitol, the “Walk for Peace” had covered roughly 1,800 miles in 91 days.
State election board cuts some campus voting sites ahead of primaries
North Carolina’s top election officials voted last week to strip early voting sites from multiple college campuses, a move student organizers and two Democratic board members say will make it harder for young and Black voters to cast a ballot in 2026. Every election cycle, county boards propose their early voting locations and hours, sending split plans to the State Board of Elections when they do not agree unanimously.
Student Senate rejects effort to remove committee chair amid broader concerns over ‘dysfunction’
Student senators overwhelmingly rejected an attempt to remove Government Relations and Oversight Chair Tan Francis on Tuesday night following tense discussions throughout their meeting that highlighted deeper frustrations over priorities, culture and communication in Student Government. The vote to remove Francis failed 0-52 with six abstentions after more than an hour of debate.
Beyond “Big Guy”: SpongeBob finds his sea legs again in “Search for SquarePants”
For many people, “SpongeBob Squarepants” was not just a cartoon, but a constant presence in the background — playing on TV after school, quoted on the playground and absorbed into our sense of humor at a young age. I would say I rank at least in the 95th percentile of “goofy goobers,” with my favorite episode being “No Weenies Allowed” — yes, the one with Weenie Hut Jr.’s — and I have fond memories of listening to “The Yellow Album” the whole way to my grandparents’ house as a child.
“An abdication”: North Carolina is the only state without a budget amid Republican stalemate
North Carolina entered the new year as the only state in the country without a new budget, leaving questions unanswered for public schools, Medicaid and the UNC System as lawmakers remain locked in an internal standoff over taxes and spending. Republicans split over taxes and spending Although Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers, Senate Democratic Whip Sen.
Fear and frustration as students and organizations navigate campus life amid federal agent deployments in the city
The recent federal immigration enforcement presence in Raleigh has left some Latino students at NC State feeling unsafe, angry and abandoned by institutional leaders, as student organizations scramble to fill what they see as a vacuum of support. While some student leaders have pushed for resolutions and resources, others say the University and top student officials have moved too slowly to meet the moment.
“The fear is unprecedented”: Raleigh, NC State community responds to federal immigration enforcement agents
Federal immigration agents began operations in Raleigh on Tuesday, eliciting responses from local leaders, NC State community members and legal experts. The deployment follows a similar, controversial operation in Charlotte over the weekend that involved aggressive tactics and numerous arrests.
Federal immigration enforcement to be deployed in Raleigh starting Tuesday
Federal immigration authorities are expected to begin operations in Wake County on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Wake County Democratic Party. “We have become aware of expected ICE activity in Wake County beginning tomorrow and continuing through the week,” the party said Monday evening.
NC State’s historic field storm revived amid new fines
Four years ago, Greg Haas broke his right leg in two places after jumping down from Carter-Finley’s eight-foot walls to rush the field following NC State’s thrilling win against UNC-Chapel Hill. After NC State’s recent domination over then-No. 8 Georgia Tech, Haas, with rod and screws now in his leg, found himself unable to resist the pull of the field again at his fiftieth game in a row.
Board of Trustees approves tuition and fee increases at November meeting
NC State’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously Friday morning to increase student tuition and fees. A 3% increase in tuition was approved across the board, meaning undergraduate resident tuition will increase by $196, graduate resident tuition will increase by $307, undergraduate non-resident tuition will increase by $945 and graduate non-resident tuition will increase by $936.
University Advancement of External Affairs Committee discusses legislative buffers, new partnerships
The NC State Advancement and External Affairs Committee convened Thursday to discuss NC State’s positioning as a land-grant university, alongside ongoing challenges with salary caps and budget delays impacting key projects and partnerships. Committee members reflected on a “busy fall semester,” recapping Chancellor Kevin Howell’s campus-wide listening tour and a season of record fundraising.
Raleigh’s sewer monsters: 16 years later, still no consensus
In April 2009, a routine sewer inspection beneath Raleigh’s Village District revealed something alarming — pulsating, beating slimy masses clinging to the inside of a six-inch pipe. The footage, captured by a robotic camera inspecting the aging sewer system, quickly went viral across the internet and sparked a mix of fascination, fear and scientific debate that still persists today.
NC State files lawsuit against Monsanto over PCB contamination in Poe Hall
NC State filed a lawsuit Wednesday morning in the Wake County Superior Court against chemical company Monsanto, alleging responsibility for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination in Poe Hall, which has remained vacant for nearly two years. In an email sent at 12:38 p.m. to students and faculty, NC State officials said the lawsuit was prompted by Monsanto’s manufacture and marketing of PCB-containing mixtures used in Poe Hall’s construction.
MFA program, bookstores drive Raleigh’s queer literature community
NC State MFA student Emilio Cabral first encountered queer literature in high school, reading “Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda” by Becky Albertalli and finding himself hiding queer-themed books from his parents as a teenager. Now, a fiction writer drawing from his Dominican American roots and Southern upbringing, Cabral is part of a growing community of queer writers and readers in Raleigh.
“Shrimps is bugs”: crustaceans krill the competition at BugFest
Thousands of visitors swarmed the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on Saturday for BugFest, the museum’s annual celebration of all things creepy-crawly, which this year spotlighted krill. Krill, although not insects, are arthropods — animals with a hard outer shell, a segmented body and jointed legs. “We say that crustaceans are bugs because bugs are anything under the category of arthropod,” said Morgan Bailey, curator of living collections at the museum.
Senate Bill 568 seeks to prepare NC for a future of psychedelic-assisted therapy
North Carolina lawmakers, health experts and advocates are weighing in as Senate Bill 568 proposes establishing a mental health task force to study the use of psychedelic-assisted therapy for conditions like depression and PTSD. Gina Giorgio, director of strategy for Students for Sensible Drug Policy and founder of the North Carolina Psychedelic Policy Coalition, has played a central role in advocating for this approach.
Turning Point USA chapter leads vigil for Charlie Kirk
Talley Student Union’s governance chamber reached capacity Thursday night as students and community members gathered for a prayer vigil honoring Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist assassinated one day earlier during an event at Utah Valley University. The vigil was held by NC State’s chapter of Turning Point USA, a national organization founded by Kirk that promotes conservative politics on university campuses.
Sabrina Carpenter bites back with “Man’s Best Friend”
Sabrina Carpenter’s newest album, “Man’s Best Friend,” released at the peak of her artistic momentum, shows Carpenter refusing to be anyone’s pet project. Instead, she’s biting back with an album full of humor, experimentation and sharp social commentary, all while keeping the pop instincts that helped “Short n’ Sweet” earn Best Pop Vocal Album at the 67th Grammys.
Red wolves born and treated on campus in landmark year for species
The red wolf, a species native to the southeastern United States, continues to recover from the brink of extinction with the help of conservation programs across the country. At NC State, a unique effort involving veterinary students, faculty and partnerships with federal wildlife agencies is playing a critical role in their recovery.
Champ follows in Ripken’s pawsteps as tee retriever for NC State Football
Raleigh has a new dog in town. Champ, a two-year-old Labrador retriever and younger brother of the late Ripken, has stepped into NC State football’s tradition of fetching kicking tees, ready to bring a familiar face back to the gameday experience. For many members of the Wolfpack, seeing a Labrador dart across the field to collect kicking tees is as much a part of gameday as the marching band or Tuffy. The tradition began with Ripken, who suddenly passed away at the beginning of this year.
Proposed inshore shrimp trawl ban unites NC’s fishing communities in statewide pushback
A proposed ban on inshore shrimp trawling in North Carolina waters ignited one of the largest mobilizations of coastal fishing communities in recent memory, flooding the General Assembly in late June with fishermen, advocates and truckloads of free shrimp. The measure, added in the final days of the legislative session to House Bill 442, would have prohibited shrimp trawling in the Pamlico Sound and other inshore waters.
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