Why would Henderson State University switch to online classes when there were only a handful of COVID-19 cases, but expect the students, faculty, and supporting staff to return to campus when there are an estimated 23,000 cases in Arkansas alone (as of July 4th)? Not to mention, there are almost 3 million cases across the United States. As a current student at Henderson State University, I believe that the University should closely evaluate the situation before making a life-threatening decision. Henderson State University needs to know what the students are feeling and thinking opposed to going back to face-to-face classes. The pandemic is spreading more rapidly as time progresses. There has been no progress in terms of controlling the pandemic's outbreak, and I seriously doubt that we will see any improvement in a month. Speaking from experience, I have been in many courses where the classrooms are filled and there were no empty seats. How will that work when we need to be practicing social distancing? The University's plan of having face-to-face classes until Thanksgiving and switching back to online classes is simply an idea that is not going to be effective. Having online classes through the Fall semester is the only logical plan if we really want to keep the students, faculty, and supporting staff safe. Henderson State University needs to put the safety of their students and faculty first. Allowing classes to resume in person is a death sentence to many of our immunocompromised and susceptible community members. Let's make a statement to Henderson State University that the student body should have just as much of a say in the decision! Please sign this petition and spread the word!