LSSU's campus has been open for in-person classes since August 10th. Starting last week, August 27th, we had our first positive COVID-19 case on campus, and with it, our first round of two-week quarantines for students in contact with the positive individual. Since then, the reported (and unreported) numbers have grown, and with it more students who are unable to attend their classes in person. 

If you've been following the way that COVID-19 spreads, as we all have for the past six months, you know that once present in a community, it doesn't go away. For us, this could mean a smattering of new cases every few weeks, or a full-fledged outbreak (the more likely outcome). On a small campus like ours, it does not take long for illness to spread, and it will not take long before many students are either infected, or quarantining in their dorms (or off-campus residences), and unable to reap the enrichment that in-person classes (even socially distant ones) can provide.

Given our unique situation of being such a small campus surrounded by a population that has thankfully not been hit hard- yet- but who is more likely to be at-risk; and with students already missing out on in-person classes due to quarantines, this petition is for LSSU to move to strictly online classes now, so that students can stay safe, and we can prevent further spread and a more catastrophic result to this semester.

Amendment (Edit): This would be applicable for all in-person lectures WITHOUT a practicum option. If labs can be EFFECTIVELY changed to an online option, they should. With the exception that many other colleges and universities all over the country made, that students receiving certificates requiring in-person hours and experience in small class sizes, or labs that require hands-on experience, may still attend their respective trainings in person, with masks.