Zixuan Cang has been selected for NC State’s 2025–26 class of Goodnight Early Career Innovators. This university-wide honor recognizes early-career faculty whose work is making important contributions in STEM and STEM education. The 25 faculty selected will receive $22,000 ­for each of the next three years to support their scholarship and research endeavors.

“The Goodnight’s commitment to investing in our faculty lays the groundwork for the recruitment, retention, and rewarding of our nation’s brightest higher education scholars,” said Chancellor Kevin Howell. “We are excited to see what our Goodnight Early Career Innovators will build for the future of NC State.” The program supports their research and encourages new ideas and innovation across campus. Faculty members eligible for the award must be tenure-track assistant professors at the time of nomination and their scholarship must clearly and substantively contribute to innovations and advancement in STEM or STEM education. Nominees were evaluated based on evidence of early productivity in research and innovation, which may include a strong early record of scholarly publication or dissemination appropriate to their discipline, external funding or recognition as an early career leader in their field.

Nominees were recommended by their colleges and selected by a committee of distinguished faculty from across the STEM disciplines at NC State. Forty-one faculty members were nominated for the award.

“Through the Goodnight’s generosity, our faculty are able to increase their impact in their respective fields through groundbreaking research,” said Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Warwick Arden. “We are incredibly thankful for this opportunity to elevate NC State’s status as a premier R1 university.”