School responses in Ohio to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
As students returned to school for the 2021-2022 school year, states set a variety of policies on education and the COVID-19 pandemic, including how schools should open to in-person instruction and whether students and staff would be required to wear masks. By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, about 66% of students nationwide were in states that left closure decisions to schools or districts, 33% were in states with state-ordered in-person instruction, and 1% were in states with state-ordered regional school closures.[1][2] All 50 states closed schools to in-person instruction at some point during the 2019-2020 school year in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
This article summarizes responses to the coronavirus in Ohio schools in the academic years ending in 2020, 2021, and 2022. You will find:
- A timeline of events by school year
- A nationwide summary of school mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year
- A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2020-2021 academic year
- A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2019-2020 academic year
Ballotpedia’s coverage of COVID-19 includes how federal, state, and local governments are responding, and how those responses are influencing election rules and operations, political campaigns, the economy, schools, and more.
This page is updated monthly, but our email is always open. We encourage you to share updates from local officials, policymakers, and campaigns in your community at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Timeline by school year
Below is a list of major events involving schools in Ohio during the coronavirus pandemic between 2019 and 2022, including school closings and openings, mask requirements, and the release of statewide operating guidance. Know of something we missed? Click here to email us and let us know.
2021-2022 school year
- Sept. 9, 2021: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio, a school data aggregator, reported seventeen in-person schooling disruptions in Ohio.[3][4]
2020-2021 school year
- June 29, 2021: At the end of the school year, Burbio reported most schools were in-person in Ohio .[5][6]
- Sept. 10, 2020: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio reported about half of schools were in-person in Ohio .[7][8]
- August 15, 2020: The Ohio Department of Health said the state would not allow face shields to be substituted for face masks in schools unless a child met certain exceptions. The health department cited CDC guidance saying it was unknown how effective face shields were at protecting from respiratory droplets.[9]
- August 4, 2020: Gov. Mike DeWine (R) announced all K-12 students would be required to wear face coverings in public schools.[10]
- July 2, 2020: DeWine released guidelines for reopening schools in the state. The guidelines included a requirement that all staff wear masks and a recommendation that students in third grade or higher wear masks.[11]
- June 2, 2020: DeWine announced that he intended to reopen schools for in-person instruction in the fall. DeWine said that the state was still working to develop health guidelines for schools and that districts would be given the flexibility to determine their start date.[12]
2019-2020 school year
- April 20, 2020: DeWine announced that schools would not reopen for in-person instruction for the remainder of the academic year. Prior to the announcement, schools were closed through May 1.[13]
- March 30, 2020: DeWine announced that the statewide school closure, initially scheduled to end April 3, was extended through May 1.[14]
- March 12, 2020: DeWine announced that all public and private schools in the state would close for three weeks beginning on March 16.[15]
Mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year
Mask requirements in schools
As of August 1, 2022, no states had school mask requirements in effect. Forty-two states left mask requirements in schools up to local authorities. Seven states banned school mask requirements.
The table below shows statewide school mask requirement laws and orders in states with school mask requirements or school mask requirement bans in place at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.
| Mask requirement orders | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| State | Ban or requirement? | Type of order | Date lifted or altered |
| Arizona | Ban | Legislative action | N/A |
| Arkansas | Ban | Legislative action | Sept. 30, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
| California | Requirement | California Department of Public Health order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Connecticut | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Delaware | Requirement | Executive order | March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Florida | Ban | Executive order | N/A[16] |
| Georgia | Ban | Legislative action | N/A |
| Hawaii | Requirement | Executive order | Aug. 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Illinois | Requirement | Illinois Department of Public Health order | Feb. 4, 2022 - Suspended by court action[17] |
| Iowa | Ban | Legislative action | May 16, 2022 - Reinstated by court action[18] |
| Kentucky | Requirement | Kentucky Board of Education order | Sept. 9, 2021 - Suspended by state law |
| Louisiana | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 16, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[19] |
| Maryland | Requirement | Maryland State Board of Education order | March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[20] |
| Massachusetts | Requirement | Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education order | Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[21] |
| Nevada | Requirement | Executive order | Feb. 10, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| New Jersey | Requirement | Executive order | March 7, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| New Mexico | Requirement | New Mexico Public Education Department order | Feb. 17, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| New York | Requirement | Executive order | March 3, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Oklahoma | Ban | Executive order | N/A |
| Oregon | Requirement | Oregon Health Authority and Department of Education order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| Pennsylvania | Requirement | Pennsylvania Department of Health order | Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
| Rhode Island | Requirement | Executive order | March 4, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
| South Carolina | Ban | Legislative action | Sept. 28, 2021 - Temporarily suspended by court action |
| Tennessee | Ban | Executive order | Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action |
| Texas | Ban | Executive order | N/A[22] |
| Utah | Ban | Legislative action | N/A |
| Virginia | Ban | Legislative action | N/A |
| Washington | Requirement | Washington State Department of Public Health order | March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action |
School mask requirements over time
School mask bans over time
Teacher and school employee vaccine requirements
Seven states had issued a statewide requirement for K-12 teachers and staff to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or receive regular coronavirus testing during the 2021-2022 school year. The table below shows teacher and staff vaccine requirement laws and orders in states that issued such policies during the 2021-2022 school year.
| Vaccine requirement orders | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| State | Testing instead of vaccination allowed? | Type of order | Date effective |
| California | Yes | California Department of Public Health order | Oct. 15, 2021 |
| Connecticut | No | Executive order | Sept. 27, 2021 |
| Delaware | Yes | Executive order | Nov. 1, 2021 |
| Illinois | Yes | Executive order | Issued: Sept. 19, 2021 Suspended by court action on Feb. 4, 2022 |
| New Jersey | Yes | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
| New York | Yes | Executive order | Sept. 19, 2021 |
| Oregon | No | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
| Washington | No | Executive order | Oct. 18, 2021 |
Student vaccine requirements
On Oct. 1, 2021, California was the first state to announce a vaccine requirement for eligible students. Louisiana also announced a vaccine requirement for eligible students on Dec. 14, but then announced the state would be removing the coronavirus vaccine from the list of required immunizations in schools on May 18, 2022.
School reopenings and closures (2020-2021 academic year)
Initial school year operating plan
Ohio released an initial operating plan for the 2020-2021 school year on July 2, 2020. An analysis of this plan appeared in our Documenting America's Path to Recovery newsletter on July 30. The sections below include an analysis of the plan, the details of the plan, and reactions from officials to the plan.
On July 2, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) unveiled “Reset and Restart,” a set of guidelines and considerations for reopening school buildings. The Ohio Department of Education developed the guidelines with input from education associations, school leaders, educators, school counselors, school nurses, and union representatives. The plan is intended to “spur local-level, partnership-based discussions and decision-making that will result in locally developed Reset and Restart Education Plans.” The Department of Education also released a companion document, “Health and Safety Guidance for Ohio K-12 Schools,” that contains five guidelines for schools.
DeWine said, “Working with educators and health officials, we’ve created K-12 school guidelines – backed by science – for schools to follow when developing their reopening plans. Schools can adjust their rules to what works best for them for a safe environment and that protects students and staff.”
On March 12, DeWine announced schools would close for three weeks beginning on March 16. On March 30, DeWine extended the closures through May 1. He closed schools to in-person instruction for the remainder of the academic year on April 20.
Ohio does not have a statewide date for public schools to reopen. According to EdWeek, public schools in Ohio typically start the academic year between the middle of August and early September.
Context
Ohio is a Republican trifecta. The governor is a Republican, and Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
The following tables show public education statistics in Ohio, including a rank comparing it to the other 49 states. Rank one is the highest number of each figure, rank 50 is the lowest. All data comes from the Common Core of Data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics.
| Ohio school metrics | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Figure | Rank |
| Per pupil spending (16-17) | $14,328 | 20 |
| Number of students (18-19) | 1,694,341 | 8 |
| Number of teachers (Fall 2016) | 102,600 | 9 |
| Number of public schools (18-19) | 3,569 | 7 |
| Student:teacher ratio (18-19) | 16.7 | 15 |
| Percent qualifying for free/reduced lunch (16-17) | 44.3% | 35 |
| Ohio school revenue | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Figure | Rank |
| Total revenue | $24,516,266,000 | 8 |
| Federal revenue percent | 7.5% | 35 |
| State revenue percent | 45.6% | 28 |
| Local revenue percent | 46.9% | 19 |
Details
District reopening plans
Districts are encouraged to use the “Reset and Restart” framework and the companion document to develop their own reopening plans. The “Reset and Restart” guidelines are not mandatory. However, the companion document states all staff must wear masks in schools. If requested, schools must provide a written justification to a local health board if a staff member is not required to wear a mask.
“Reset and Restart” encourages schools to create a planning team to implement the state’s recommendations.
| “ | Planning teams should include school leaders, local health department officials, local school board members, educators, education support professionals, school health professionals, parents, students, community partners and local business leaders. Plans should be developed in a transparent manner that address the guidelines and considerations contained in this document but are customized to the local needs and attributes of the students, staff and community. Once complete, schools and their partners should have a firm understanding of the educational experience and return to school. Plans should be posted to school and district websites to promote awareness and shared understanding.[23] | ” |
In-person, hybrid, and online learning
“Reset and Restart” asks districts to be flexible when deciding whether to return students to classrooms or continue the distance learning model adopted when schools first closed.
| “ | Because of continuing uncertainty and the need for flexibility, a school or district’s plan likely will need to embrace multiple approaches. While classroom learning still may enjoy a preferred position, more discussions are underway about remote learning, blended learning (combination of online and site-based) and mixed-methods learning (online, self-directed, site-based, work-based, etc.) in the context of reopening. It is important to note that students from the Ohio Association of Student Leaders indicated a blended approach was preferential for meeting the unique needs of individual students, allowing flexibility for both students and teachers (including time, space, socialization).[23] | ” |
For classroom learning, the plan states that “Schools may consider ‘looping’ classroom teachers (a practice in which students have the same classroom teacher in a subject and/or grade level for two or more consecutive years) or co-teaching models, where practical, to maximize understanding of students’ current levels of educational attainment.”
For remote learning, the plan recommends:
| “ | Remote learning will continue to play a role in the education experiences of Ohio’s students in some manner. At a minimum, should a school find it must close due to a flare-up of COVID-19, or should a student need to be quarantined, remote learning will be an important contributor to sustaining educational opportunities. Even prior to the pandemic, many districts had made significant investments in remote learning capabilities and technology and shifted fairly smoothly to a completely online provision of educational services.[23] | ” |
A note in the plan states that “Remote learning should be considered as an option for students and staff for the entire school year, as many families will have higher-risk health concerns and/or may not feel comfortable with in-person instruction until a vaccine is available.”
Mask requirements
Staff are required to wear masks in school buildings, according to the “Health and Safety Guidance for Ohio K-12 Schools” document, and schools are required to develop a face mask policy.
The state does not require students older than three to wear face coverings. The guidance for students states:
| “ | It is strongly recommended that students in 3rd grade and higher wear a face mask unless they are unable to do so for a health or developmental reason. Schools should work to reduce any social stigma for a student who, for medical or developmental reasons, cannot and should not wear a mask. It is anticipated that some schools will be comfortable in starting masks in kindergarten and some first grade, or some later. The majority opinion among experts appears to be that children kindergarten through 5th grade can wear masks as long as consideration is given for the age and developmental level of the child and the physical situation the child is in at that moment.[23] | ” |
The plan states that face shields can be an appropriate alternative to masks if the shield extends below the chin.
In-person health recommendations and requirements
“Reset and Restart” recommends using square footage to determine the maximum number of staff and students who can occupy a classroom. It also recommends that other non-classroom spaces, such as auditoriums and outdoor areas, be considered alternatives for classroom instruction.
For scheduling and grouping, the plan recommends:
| “ | There may be new models of course and student scheduling and grouping as districts rethink the ways they use time and space. Districts may consider split scheduling or alternating days. Districts also may utilize space on weekends or evenings. Districts also may choose to rethink how each building is used and for which students. For example, an elementary school in one part of the district could be configured to also include some middle school students if such a configuration could help address transportation challenges.
Scheduling options that reduce the number of students in each classroom, hallways, cafeterias, locker rooms, on school transportation, etc., also are worth reviewing. Students should be grouped in ways that minimize movement between rooms and into common spaces. This might include placing students into cohorts and scheduling percentages of them on a given day and alternating the cohorts for in-school learning with work that is completed at home. (Remote work can be accomplished in electronic or paper formats to best meet unique needs of students.) Also, teachers could move from classroom to classroom rather than students. Food could be delivered and consumed in classrooms instead of students congregating in the cafeteria.[23] |
” |
The plan recommends the following for students and staff transitioning between classrooms:
| “ | Schools should consider the possibility of teachers moving rather than large numbers of students doing so to minimize the number of interactions (consistent with promoting social distancing).[23] | ” |
Transportation and busing requirements and restrictions
“Reset and Restart” includes the following considerations for busing and transportation:
| “ | Health and Safety Considerations for Buses: The health and safety precautions prescribed by the Ohio Department of Health and local health departments have implications for routine practices on school buses. Implementing daily health routines will require new practices and protocols. Each bus will need to be analyzed for adherence to guidelines, keeping safety of students and drivers foremost. This will result in difficult decisions as to who is transported and how this works.
Logistical Considerations for Buses: A district reopening plan should address school bus logistical issues. This includes the number of buses required to provide transportation in accordance with health guidelines (including students receiving transportation to community schools, nonpublic schools and joint vocational schools). It is important that districts maintain close and frequent communication with community schools, nonpublic schools and joint vocational schools to ensure transportation arrangements are coordinated and disruptions are minimized. Districts should be proactive in obtaining ridership and schedule information for each school participating in the district’s transportation plan to determine how best to meet the transportation needs of students.[23] |
” |
The “Health and Prevention Guidance for Ohio K-12 Schools” strongly encourages school districts to require students to wear masks on school buses.
Reactions
- Scott DiMauro, the president of the Ohio Education Association, said, “OEA understands and respects the long-standing adherence to local control in decision-making around public education, but the state also has a critical role to play amidst an unprecedented public health crisis and a rising number of cases of COVID-19. While we appreciate the consideration given to the importance of social distancing, health checks, and sanitation protocols in the Governor’s plan, it lacks a means of enforcement, even when a county is in the highest tier of the alert system.”
Map of school closures
The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2020-2021 academic year.
As of July 8, 2021, the status of school closures and reopenings was as follows:
- Two states (Delaware, Hawaii) and Washington, D.C. had state-ordered regional school closures, required closures for certain grade levels, or allowed hybrid instruction only.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 410,896 students (0.81% of students nationwide)
- Thirteen states had state-ordered in-person instruction.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 15,697,460 students (30.96% of students nationwide)
- One state (Arizona) had state-ordered in-person instruction for certain grades.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 1,152,586 students (2.27% of students nationwide)
- Thirty-four states left decisions to schools or districts.
- 2019-20 enrollment: 33,449,499 students (65.96% of students nationwide)
School reopenings and closures (2019-2020 academic year)
The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2019-2020 academic year.
- States closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 48
- Number of public school students in states closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 50,261,464
The chart below shows the first date schools in a state were closed to in-person instruction during the 2019-2020 academic year, divided by the political party of the governor.
School responses by state
To read about school responses to the coronavirus pandemic in others states, click one of the following links below:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
General resources
The chart below shows coronavirus statistics from countries across the world. The information is provided by Real Clear Politics.
Click the links below to explore official resources related to the coronavirus outbreak.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor
- U.S. Department of Education
- World Health Organization
- Trends in Number of COVID-19 Cases and Deaths in the US Reported to CDC, by State/Territory
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccinations, Our World in Data (Number of vaccines administered)
- Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker, New York Times (Progress of vaccine trials)
See also
- Documenting America's Path to Recovery
- School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2021-2022 academic year)
- School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2020-2021 academic year)
- Ohio’s responses to the coronavirus pandemic
- COVID-19 vaccine distribution by state
- Travel restrictions by state
- Federal government responses to the coronavirus pandemic
Footnotes
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Number of operating public schools and districts, student membership, teachers, and pupil/teacher ratio, by state or jurisdiction: School year 2019–20," accessed September 10, 2021
- ↑ EducationWeek, "Map: Where Were Schools Required to Be Open for the 2020-21 School Year?," June 14, 2021
- ↑ To read more about Burbio's school disruption tracking, click here
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed August 27, 2021
- ↑ Burbio rated Ohio's in-person index at 87.4. To read more about Burbio's school opening tracker, click here. To read more about Burbio's methodology, click here.
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed Oct. 8, 2021
- ↑ Burbio rated Ohio's in-person index between 40-60. To read more about Burbio's school opening tracker, click here. To read more about Burbio's methodology, click here.
- ↑ Burbio, "Burbio's K-12 School Opening Tracker," accessed Oct. 8, 2021
- ↑ ABC 6, "Ohio schools can't substitute face shields for face masks in most cases, ODH says," August 15, 2020
- ↑ AOL, "Ohio governor orders all children in grades K-12 wear masks at public schools that reopen," August 4, 2020
- ↑ ABC6, "Governor DeWine releases plan for reopening Ohio's schools," July 2, 2020
- ↑ Cleveland.com, "Gov. Mike DeWine intends to reopen Ohio schools this fall," June 2, 2020
- ↑ NBC4, "Ohio K-12 schools closed for the remainder of the academic year," April 20, 2020
- ↑ Cincinnati Enquirer, "Coronavirus: Ohio extends K-12 school closure until May, raising questions for students," March 30, 2020
- ↑ New York Times, "'This is the time to do it': Schools shut down in Maryland, Ohio and Washington." March 12, 2020
- ↑ On Sept. 2, 2021 the ban was temporarily suspended by court action. An appeals court upheld the ban on Sept. 10.
- ↑ Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) ended the statewide school mask requirement on Feb. 28, 2022.
- ↑ On Sept. 13, 2021 the ban was temporarily suspended by court action for all schools. On Jan. 25, 2022, the ban was partially reinstated.
- ↑ Oct. 26, 2021 - School districts could be exempt from the school mask requirement if they followed CDC quarantine guidance
- ↑ Dec. 7, 2021 - School districts could be exempt from the school mask requirement if they met one of the three following criteria: 1) the county vaccination rate was 80% or higher, 2) 80% of school staff and students were vaccinated, or 3) COVID-19 transmission in the county was considered moderate or low for 14 straight days.
- ↑ Oct. 1 - Schools could become exempt from the school mask requirement when at least 80% of students were vaccinated
- ↑ On Nov. 10, 2021 the ban was suspended by court action. An appeals court upheld the ban on Dec. 1.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 23.4 23.5 23.6 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.