With COVID-19 spreading across the nation, many college campuses are planning on sending students home.

In the state, the University System of Maryland, which includes University of Maryland, College Park; Towson University; and University of Maryland, Baltimore County announced Tuesday that they will have remote instruction following their spring break.

Students at Montgomery College are beginning to ask the college to take similar measures. A change.org petition is circulating asking MC to close.

The petition, started by Ali Paryavi, has over 250 signatures as of publication.

“We think surviving is the main priority now.” reads the description of the petition, “By that, we are asking you to please close the school, and have our kids and teachers communicate via email, Skype, or other sources to progress academy [sic].”

“I get sick very easily and my parents and I have health issues that [the coronavirus] may deeply affect.” Vivian Cid, a Montgomery College student wrote in a comment on the petition, “Being in school right now is not safe, especially since I have to take public transportation in between campuses.”

However, not all are as eager to shut down the campus. Maryam Iftikhar, a student in her last semester at MC, chose not to sign the petition. While expressing concern that keeping the college open could be a health risk, Iftikhar worries about how it will impact learning.

“I also find it a little hard to see how every MC class could productively shift to an online platform.” Said Iftikhar, “Some class formats and teaching styles won’t necessarily be as effective if forced to be done online.”

Despite the on going discussion between students, the college has yet to announce a closure of the school. Marcus Rosano, the Director of Media and Public Relations for MC, stated that the college will not be taking a petition into account when making decisions that could affect public health.

“There are countless factors that go into making decisions including the consultations we have with State and County entities, mainly [The Department of Health and Human Services].” Said Rosano.