Since information about PCB exposure at Poe Hall emerged, NC State has released minimal updates to the campus community. Limited information from the University has left some students and community members discontent and seeking additional information about exposure risks and available resources
Evie Shackles, a fourth-year studying psychology and current student senator, said the University has not been transparent enough about the PCB exposures. She referenced the Poe Hall Updates page, which had not been significantly updated between May 2025 and March 2026.
“I do not feel like [the University] has been transparent enough. The Poe Hall updates page has not had all the information. We’ve been able to find other information about PCBs in the campus buildings, and they’ve definitely not been transparent about the possibility of PCBs in other buildings,” Shackles said. “To them, it’s just Poe Hall, but in reality, it’s a decent amount of other buildings here.”
Chelsea Ludquist-Wentz, a graduate student in the Department of History and a founding member of Campus Community Alliance for Environmental Justice, said uncertainty surrounding PCB exposure in campus buildings has raised concerns.
“It is alarming what happened in Poe because first off, people didn’t know what they were being exposed to. They’re using the building… You go to your class because you’re assigned to it,” Ludquist-Wentz said. “You teach in a certain classroom because you’re assigned to it. Housekeeping services are assigned to certain buildings, and you assume that these places are safe, and continued exposure can be a real problem with PCBs.”
Poe Hall is the main focus of the lawsuits filed against NC State, but it is not the only building that contains PCBs.
Shackles said the student body is unaware of the extent to which these buildings on campus are contaminated.
“A lot of the students I talk to don’t actually know the extent of the potential contamination in a lot of [other university] buildings… I had a class in Cox Hall, which is connected to Dabney Hall… and I wore a mask because I thought the building was really contaminated,” Shackles said. “There’s been a lot of evidence for it, and [other students] were shocked, and then they seemed to get really concerned, and I feel like people just don’t realize [how many buildings are contaminated], and if they realize, they would be a lot more concerned than they already are. I know I am concerned.”
Ludquist-Wentz said because PCBs were so commonly used in infrastructure, students should be aware of where they could possibly be exposed on campus.
“It’s not just Poe Hall. PCBs were commonly used building materials in the mid-century; they weren’t banned until 1979. There are 70 other buildings on our campus right now that could have the same problems as Poe,” Lundquist-Wentz said. “We should all be looking at all the information coming out about Poe Hall and seeing, ‘Hey, are there other people that are being put in harm’s way right now?’ We just need more information about other buildings to make that assessment.”
Chancellor Kevin Howell released a statement on March 9 explaining that the lawsuits filed against NC State regarding PCB exposure were being investigated and he hears the concern and worry of the student body.
Ludquist-Wentz said this is the first time there has been communication from the University about the situation.
“That’s really serious, to not even acknowledge [health concerns among affected groups]. I was interested to see Chancellor Howell’s message this week about the newly released NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) health hazard evaluation about Poe Hall. His message, at least, from my estimation, was one of the first times I’d seen a higher-up even acknowledge that people have health harms out there,” Ludquist-Wentz said. “He wasn’t saying, for sure, it’s from PCBs in Poe Hall, but that goes a long way for folks to feel like their fear and their anxieties and their health are actually acknowledged.”
Shackles said the University has not communicated enough information with its students about the Poe Hall exposure.
“[The University] has not been transparent about the risks and findings related to PCB exposure]. The report that just went out the other day, and Chancellor Howell’s message about it, feel like, is the first time the University administration has acknowledged the extent of the risks of PCBs,” Shackles said. “Before that, they were like, oh, there’s like possible health hazards, but we don’t really know. This is the first time they’ve said PCBs are known to cause cancer, and [the University] is checking it out, and I still feel like they’re not doing enough, the bar is pretty low, but I’m glad that they’re at least trying.”
The University has been almost silent, keeping students in the dark about other possible exposures, Shackles added.
“The University isn’t telling us anything; we have to dig for this information. And then we find it, and it’s like, what the heck? The contamination in Dabney is as bad as it is in Poe. Dabney could literally be the next Poe Hall, and there are other buildings, and it’s crazy,” Shackles said. “I’m like, why doesn’t the University just test to like see and be transparent? I know the issue with the situation with Poe Hall was kind of a mess, having to relocate the education and psychology departments, and I get that they don’t want to do that again, but our health is way more important than convenience, and I wish they would realize that.”
Ludquist-Wentz said that after the report of the initial exposure, many UNC System schools did testing on all their buildings, but NC State has yet to test.
“After Poe Hall closed, multiple other universities inside of our system, and the UNC system, essentially conducted PCB testing campaigns, where they went around their buildings and tested to see if they might have a Poe Hall in their midst too,” Ludqust-Wentz said. “NC State did not do that right away, still hasn’t done it. And as time goes on, we get more information about Poe Hall, its status is this canary in a coal mine, it becomes more egregious, right? And so we’re getting armed with more and more information all the time. And so I do think that there does need to be a next step pretty soon, about that.”
Think and do is the motto of the Wolfpack. Ludquist-Wentz said students and alumni are using this mentality to do their own research on PCB exposure in order to educate the community and speak out against the silence from the University.
“People on campus and beyond are absolutely talking to each other about this. I see students, and I get contacted by students in classes who want to do projects related to this, or it makes them think about doing a project, even in a different community, because they have this experience with Poe Hall,” Ludquist-Wentz said. “And I think that just speaks to the think and do mentality. They’ve learned something from what’s going on on the NC State campus, and they either want to engage with it directly or figure out ways that it can help improve the world… there are multiple groups and students that are thinking, talking to each other, doing research to try and address this really serious problem.”
Shackles said word of mouth is the best way for students and the community to be aware of exposures and how to avoid them.
“Tell other people, spread the word, because I don’t think the administration is going to just, I don’t think the administration is going to test [campus buildings] out of the goodness of their heart, unfortunately. I wish they would, but I think it’s gonna take pressure, and at the moment, they’re trying to cover stuff up,” Shackles said. “I really think we need to get the word out. If everyone on campus, or even just the majority of people on campus, knew about the contamination in most of our buildings. And if a lot of people knew the extent of it and were concerned, I think we could put pressure on the University. We need numbers. Tell other people, let other people know, hey, this building might be contaminated. Hey, the University isn’t telling us this or that.”
