Due to the alarming numbers of Covid-19, in North Carolina and the variant being found in North Carolina. The variant is highly transmissible and affects people much more. In person labs create a higher risk of transmission as we would be sharing equipment and breathing in the same air for hours at a time. Making the classes smaller doesn't ensure our safety as there's a chance the equipment as well as chairs and tables may not be cleaned properly. 

We as students feel we shouldn't be put at risk for a class that can be online. We are not only putting ourselves at risk but our families, other students and professors. ALL labs for the Spring semester should be online! This will make it safer for all students, teachers and their families.

Here are some reasons a professor has stated agreeing in person classes are putting everyone at a higher risk for Covid-19

"The decision to keep the labs partly in-person was predicated on the original spring schedule, where we would not be returning to class after spring break due to the increased risk of gathering after a weeklong break. I see no reason why a "spring" break in February would be significantly safer than one the first week of March, especially one immediately following the Super Bowl.

Unlike the faculty that teach lecture courses, the individual lab instructors did not have a choice in the format of the labs; they are assigned to teach these courses after the delivery format was determined. Several of our lab instructors are in high risk groups or have family that are at-risk. In addition, I have received numerous e-mails from some of your colleagues in the labs concerned about the safety of their family/housemates. We do not have the resources to run parallel online and in-person sections; it's all or nothing.

The new COVID variants detected in the US are significantly more transmissible. Even with the increased safety measures we have been putting in place in the labs, the sheer number of students we need to rotate in-and-out of the lab rooms greatly raises the transmission risk to the instructors and other students."