COLLEGES: Florida public universities, including UCF, were ordered to switch to online instruction as soon as possible.

Florida public universities, including UCF, were ordered Wednesday to switch to online instruction as soon as possible because of fears about the coronavirus.

The state university system said the change should last for at least two weeks and students who are on campus should be asked to return home or, for those on spring break, stay away.

The decision was made, according to a message on the system’s website, as it “has become clear that to protect the students and the residents of our state, proactive rather than reactive guidance to universities is necessary.”

“To be clear, campuses will remain open, and operations will continue, although some adjustments may be made as determined by each university,” the message said.

Florida’s state universities follow more than 100 others across the country that have announced they’re halting in-person classes due to concerns about the virus, according to USA Today. Some college leaders have said they fear students exposed to the virus while traveling over spring break might carry it with them when they return to campus.

The University of Central Florida had been preparing to respond to the coronavirus since January, a press release said. The school is urging students, who are on spring break this week, to stay at their permanent residences and away from campus after classes resume on Monday.

“Today’s decision came after much thought and preparation to ensure our students, faculty and staff can continue to receive a quality education, teach and work, safely,” UCF interim president Thad Seymour wrote on Twitter Wednesday afternoon.

With new cases confirmed in Florida each day, Wednesday’s decision “prioritizes the safety and wellbeing of our campus community members – many of whom have traveled during this week’s spring break,” UCF’s release said.

Students at seven other institutions, including Florida State University, also are on spring break or going on break during the coming weeks, according to the state. They also will be asked not to return to campus.

The remaining schools, including the University of Florida, should encourage students to go home for at least two weeks, the state said.

Florida university students reacted Wednesday on social media to the news, with some cheering at the news and others groaning. UCF junior Alec Johnson, an electrical engineering major, said he worried about being able to complete the lab components of one of his courses without access to the computer systems he needs on campus.

“It’s just going to be a pain, really,” he said in an interview. “I don’t like learning online. I try not to take online courses even though I know UCF has been trying to push that.”

Johnson, who is from Miami, stayed in his apartment across the street from UCF’s campus over spring break. He plans to stay there in the coming weeks even though his classes will be online, in part so he can use the library to study.

All of the schools should continue to provide dining, counseling, health services and library services, according to the university system. Students are encouraged to remain offcampus, the state system said each university should plan to provide residential accommodations for students who need help or can’t leave.

Julie Wargo said her daughter, a sophomore at UF, “isn’t worried at all” about the threat of the virus and plans to stay in Gainesville so she can keep practicing with her club softball team and rehearsing for a play.

And many university students are already accustomed to taking at least some of their courses online. Jardon Wargo usually takes one of her classes that way each semester, her mother said.

“It’s not going to rock her world to have to take her courses online,” Wargo said.

But Andrea Ochoa, a Master of Business Administration student at UCF, said she and her classmates spent much of their spring break studying for an exam scheduled for next week. They’re now worried they won’t be able to take the test as planned.

“We knew it would happen,” Ochoa said of the switch to online courses, adding that at first, “we were all joking about it, laughing. Now, we’re just anxious.”