Did Amy Acton close Ohio schools during COVID?
Yes – as Ohio’s Health Director, Amy Acton signed the public-health order that shut down every K-12 school building in the state — public, community, and private — starting March 16, 2020. She signed a second order on March 30 extending the closure, and Governor DeWine announced on April 20 that schools would not reopen for the rest of the school year. Acton’s formal order, dated April 29, extended the closure through June 30, 2020, keeping nearly 1.7 million Ohio kids out of the classroom (The Independent, 3/31/20 https://www.pressreader.com/usa/the-morning-journal-lorain-oh/20200603/281479278637101 ). Parents were left scrambling for child care mid-shift. Districts had no real plan for meals, special education, or testing. Seniors lost prom, graduation, and spring sports. Acton has called it a “terribly hard decision” — and, as a 2026 candidate, she has defended it rather than disavowed it — but the decision was hers to sign, and Ohio families lived with the consequences for months.
How Ohio Families Were Affected
| Group affected | What changed | Source | Full Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working parents / families needing child care | Lost school-based child care with no advance notice, forcing many to scramble for coverage while working; EO 2020-04D and 2020-07D then closed standard child care programs entirely, leaving only pandemic-licensed slots. | Governor’s Office — Executive Order 2020-04D Executive Order 2020-07D |
https://governor.ohio.gov/media/executive-orders/executive-order-2020-04d https://governor.ohio.gov/media/executive-orders/executive-order-2020-07d |
| School districts and administrators | Had no clear plan for meals, special education services, or state testing requirements when the closure was first ordered. | Ohio Dept. of Education bulletin ODE minimum-hours guidance |
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/OHED/bulletins/280e6bd http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Student-Supports/Coronavirus/Additional-Information-on-Instructional-Hours-and |
| High school seniors | Lost graduation ceremonies, prom, and spring sports; state testing and school report cards were canceled outright. | The Independent, 3/31/20 (reprinted, Morning Journal / Lorain, OH) | https://www.pressreader.com/usa/the-morning-journal-lorain-oh/20200603/281479278637101 |
| All Ohio families with school-age children | Juggled remote schooling, changed work routines, and months of not knowing when — or whether — buildings would reopen, from the March 16 closure through the April 20 announcement that it would last the rest of the year. | WOSU The Hill |
https://radio.wosu.org/post/coronavirus-ohio-k-12-schools-will-remain-closed-rest-academic-year https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/493739-ohio-closes-schools-through-the-rest-of-the-year/ |
| Students with developmental needs, health challenges, limited internet, or unstable home life | Specifically flagged by DeWine, announcing the year-long closure, as facing the greatest risk from remote learning. | WOSU, 4/20/20 | https://radio.wosu.org/post/coronavirus-ohio-k-12-schools-will-remain-closed-rest-academic-year |
| Families comparing schools/daycare to other reopened sectors | By May 8, 2020, salons and restaurants had specific reopening dates while schools and daycare had none. Child care got an in-person reopening date May 31 — K-12 school buildings never got one for the rest of that academic year. | NBC4 / Fox8, 5/8/20 Patch / NBC4 |
https://www.nbc4i.com/community/health/coronavirus/no-timeline-for-reopening-daycares-churches-gyms-or-bmvs-in-ohio/ https://patch.com/ohio/cleveland/child-care-can-reopen-ohio-may-31 |
The 100,000 Ohioans Claim Behind the Closure Decision
On March 12, 2020 — the same day as the school-closure order — Acton said at least 1% of Ohio’s population, over 100,000 people, was already carrying the virus, despite only 5 confirmed cases in the state at the time:
https://www.foxnews.com/health/ohio-likely-has-100000-coronavirus-cases-top-health-official-says
One day later, on March 13, 2020, she walked the figure back: “I am not saying there are absolutely for certain 100,000 people. I’m saying I’m guesstimating.”
Why it matters: The 100,000-person estimate was offered as part of the public rationale for closing schools statewide, then retracted within 24 hours as a guess rather than a measured figure. This is distinct from, but the same pattern as, Acton’s later 50%→5% COVID mortality-rate claim (see the “What Amy Acton Has Said” table below), which was also walked back after independent fact-checking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Both played a role, but the legal action was Acton’s: DeWine announced the policy, while Acton, as Ohio Health Director, signed the actual public-health orders — issued March 16, extended March 30, and formally fixed through June 30 by her April 29 order — that carried out and prolonged the closure.
The initial closure began on March 16, 2020. Acton extended it on March 30, and Governor DeWine announced on April 20 that schools would stay closed for the rest of the year. Acton’s order of April 29 formally set the closure through June 30, 2020.
Families dealt with disrupted in-person learning, child-care strain, canceled milestones like prom and graduation, and months of uncertainty about reopening.
School closures are part of the record voters may use to evaluate how Acton handled executive power and emergency decision-making — a record she has defended, not disavowed, as a 2026 candidate.
On the same day as the closure order, Acton said at least 1% of Ohio’s population — over 100,000 people — was already carrying the virus, despite only 5 confirmed cases at the time. She walked the figure back the next day, saying she had been “guesstimating.”
No. By May 8, 2020, salons and restaurants had received specific reopening dates, while schools and daycare still had no announced timeline. Child care was allowed to reopen on May 31 — K-12 schools remained closed for the remainder of the academic year.
Ohio’s own fall 2020 test data showed roughly a third of a year’s learning loss statewide, with larger losses for Black students and students in fully remote districts. Four years later, 2024 NAEP data show Ohio reading scores still had not recovered, with about 38% of 4th-graders and 31% of 8th-graders unable to read at a basic level; national research (Brookings, the Education Recovery Scorecard, and the Urban Institute) found math partially recovered but reading recovery stalled, with effects projected to persist into adult earnings and college enrollment for the affected cohort.
School Closure Impact Table
Every claim below is tied to a source and a live URL. Rows still carrying an open sourcing question are called out in “Open Items” at the end of this document.
| Issue | What happened | Ohioan impact | Source | Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Statewide K-12 closure | All public, community, and private K-12 schools were closed to students beginning March 16, 2020, under a Director’s Order signed March 14, 2020. | Students and parents statewide lost normal in-person schooling. | Ohio Governor’s Office corroborated by Executive Order 2020-07D’s own recital of the March 14 Director’s Order |
https://governor.ohio.gov/media/news-and-media/announces-school-closures |
| District continuity burden | ODE’s own March 12, 2020 bulletin confirmed the closure and directed districts to alternative-learning planning; ODE issued a March 12 Q&A on special education and March 18 guidance on serving students with disabilities during the closure; separately, HB 197 gave districts flexibility on minimum instructional hours. | School systems had to shift quickly on hours, testing, special education, and meals while families dealt with uncertainty. | Ohio Dept. of Education (bulletin, direct) ODE minimum-hours guidance (direct) ODE special-ed guidance (secondary source — characterized by Walter Haverfield law firm, not a direct ODE citation) |
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/OHED/bulletins/280e6bd http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Student-Supports/Coronavirus/Additional-Information-on-Instructional-Hours-and https://www.walterhav.com/interpreting-the-ohio-department-of-educations-guidance-regarding-students-with-disabilities-during-the-states-school-building-closure/ |
| Extended closure | Acton signed a second order March 30 extending the closure; DeWine announced April 20 schools would stay closed the rest of the year; Acton’s April 29 order fixed the end date at June 30, 2020. | The disruption moved beyond a short pause and affected the entire remainder of the school year. | WOSU The Hill Daily Caller (citing Ohio Chamber of Commerce documents) |
https://radio.wosu.org/post/coronavirus-ohio-k-12-schools-will-remain-closed-rest-academic-year https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/493739-ohio-closes-schools-through-the-rest-of-the-year/ https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/03/amy-acton-ohio-gubernatorial-race-school-closings-covid-amber-duke/ |
| Child-care disruption | DeWine’s Executive Order 2020-04D (March 17) created Temporary Pandemic Child Care licenses; Executive Order 2020-07D (March 24) then required all standard child care programs to close by March 25, with only pandemic-licensed centers permitted to operate from March 26. | Working parents and essential workers lost standard child care and had to seek a pandemic-licensed slot or go without. | Governor’s Office — Executive Order 2020-04D and Executive Order 2020-07D (both direct primary sources) | https://governor.ohio.gov/media/executive-orders/executive-order-2020-04d https://governor.ohio.gov/media/executive-orders/executive-order-2020-07d |
| Broader family routine | Acton signed the statewide Stay at Home order on March 22, 2020, effective March 23 through April 6, overlapping directly with the K-12 and child-care closures already in effect. | Families faced simultaneous remote school, limited movement, changed work routines, and uncertain reopening timelines. | Text of Acton’s signed Stay at Home Order (hosted copy) Vorys law firm summary NGA Ohio COVID timeline |
https://www.calfee.com/assets/htmldocuments/ODH%20Stay%20at%20Home%20Oder.pdf https://www.vorys.com/publication-Overview-of-Ohio-Department-of-Health-Directors-Stay-at-Home-Order |
Timeline of School Closure Decisions
Verified against primary and contemporaneous sources.
| Date | Action | Source | Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 12, 2020 | DeWine announces all K-12 schools will close for three weeks, effective end of day March 16. | Ohio Governor’s Office (governor.ohio.gov) | https://governor.ohio.gov/media/news-and-media/announces-school-closures |
| March 16, 2020 | Closure takes effect statewide — public, community, and private K-12. | NGA Ohio COVID timeline (nga.org) | https://www.nga.org/updates/ohio/ |
| March 30, 2020 | Acton signs the order extending the closure, pushing the reopening date to May 1. | Morning Journal (Lorain, OH) Ballotpedia citing Cincinnati Enquirer |
https://www.pressreader.com/usa/the-morning-journal-lorain-oh/20200603/281479278637101 https://ballotpedia.org/School_responses_in_Ohio_to_the_coronavirus_(COVID-19)_pandemic |
| April 20, 2020 | DeWine announces schools will stay closed for the rest of the academic year. | WOSU The Hill |
https://radio.wosu.org/post/coronavirus-ohio-k-12-schools-will-remain-closed-rest-academic-year https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/493739-ohio-closes-schools-through-the-rest-of-the-year/ |
| April 29, 2020 | Acton issues the formal order maintaining the closure through June 30. | Daily Caller, citing Ohio Chamber of Commerce documents | https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/03/amy-acton-ohio-gubernatorial-race-school-closings-covid-amber-duke/ |
| May 8, 2020 | Salons and restaurants received reopening dates; schools, daycare, and senior centers still had no reopening timeline announced. | NBC4 / Fox8, 5/8/20 | https://www.nbc4i.com/community/health/coronavirus/no-timeline-for-reopening-daycares-churches-gyms-or-bmvs-in-ohio/ https://fox8.com/news/coronavirus/no-timeline-for-reopening-daycares-churches-gyms-or-bmvs-in-ohio/ |
| May 31, 2020 | Ohio’s child care providers were permitted to reopen in person — K-12 school buildings, by contrast, were never given a reopening date and stayed closed for in-person instruction for the rest of the academic year. | Patch / NBC4 | https://patch.com/ohio/cleveland/child-care-can-reopen-ohio-may-31 |
| June 30, 2020 | Formal end date of the K-12 closure order. | Same Daily Caller / Chamber of Commerce sourcing | https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/03/amy-acton-ohio-gubernatorial-race-school-closings-covid-amber-duke/ |
What Amy Acton Has Said About the School Closures
Includes her own statements defending the decision, a fact-check-relevant claim, and the competing narrative her campaign and supporters have raised — included and attributed so this page reads as the complete record rather than one side of it.
| Date | Quote / Claim | Context | Source | Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/12/20 (contemporaneous) | “It was a terribly hard decision” to close schools; “I am asking philanthropies and businesses to come alongside our schools and communities to help in the days to come.” | Framing the initial closure as necessary and painful, same day as the order. | Dayton Business Journal, 3/12/20 | https://governor.ohio.gov/media/news-and-media/announces-school-closures |
| 3/12/20–3/13/20 (contemporaneous) | “At the very least 1 percent of our population is carrying this virus in Ohio today — that’s over 100,000 people” (3/12/20); one day later: “I am not saying there are absolutely for certain 100,000 people. I’m saying I’m guesstimating.” (3/13/20) | Acton cited this estimate the same day as the school-closure and mass-gathering orders, framing it as part of the rationale for acting; she walked the figure back to a “guesstimate” roughly 24 hours later, with Ohio’s confirmed case count at 13 at the time. | Fox News, 3/12/20 (initial claim) The Hill, 3/13/20 (walk-back) |
https://www.foxnews.com/health/ohio-likely-has-100000-coronavirus-cases-top-health-official-says https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/487534-ohio-official-was-guesstimating-statement-that-100000-people-have/ |
| 7/3/25 (campaign) | Asked directly whether she regrets closing schools, Acton said she and DeWine “prioritized saving lives and getting us open earlier, which in fact we did.” | As a 2026 gubernatorial candidate, defending rather than disavowing the closure decision when pressed by Daily Caller’s Amber Duke on The Hill’s “Rising.” | Daily Caller, 7/3/25 (interview on The Hill’s Rising) | https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/03/amy-acton-ohio-gubernatorial-race-school-closings-covid-amber-duke/ |
| 2024 (retrospective) | Described advising DeWine through “tough decisions, such as closing schools and major events”; separately claimed the COVID mortality rate had been “50%” in March 2020, dropping to “5%” by June. | Told to medical students; the 50%→5% mortality claim was later fact-checked by Fox News as significantly overstated relative to CDC data — relevant context for assessing how she has characterized the stakes of the closure decision. | Ohio University (2024 talk, reported 2025) Fox News fact-check |
https://www.ohio.edu/news/2024/04/ohio-exclusive-dr-amy-acton-shares-insights-early-pandemic-medical-students https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ramaswamy-torches-dem-rival-dem-rival-over-outrageous-covid-19-claim-spewing-lies |
| 4/24/25 (analysis) | Neutral characterization of the criticism against her: she “used her emergency powers to virtually shut down the state with shelter-in-place orders, masking in public, and forcing Ohio’s school students into remote learning.” | Non-partisan political analysis piece weighing both the praise and criticism of Acton’s pandemic record ahead of her campaign. | WVXU (Cincinnati Public Radio), 4/24/25 | https://www.wvxu.org/politics/2025-04-24/analysis-amy-acton-covid-pandemic-ohio-governor |
| Undated (counter-narrative) | “The decisions to close businesses, schools and public spaces were made by Gov. Mike DeWine, the elected leader of Ohio — not Acton.” | A pro-Acton reader letter (Columbus Dispatch) arguing she was advisor, not decision-maker — the competing claim this page’s own sourcing (her signature on the March 16, March 30, and April 29 orders) directly addresses. | Columbus Dispatch letter, via Yahoo News | https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/amy-acton-saved-lives-during-084032344.html |
Long-Term Impact: Research & Data
Ohio-specific research shows reading recovery has lagged years after the closures, students in fully remote districts lost more ground than their peers, and Black students and other vulnerable groups were hit hardest. National data confirm the same pattern: math has partly recovered, but reading has not, and the effects are showing up as far out as the high school Class of 2024.
Ohio-specific academic research first, national context second — per house style, lead with the most directly relevant evidence.
| Study / Source | Finding | Scope | Source | Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fordham Institute (Ohio) 2024 NAEP analysis | Four years post-pandemic, Ohio 4th-grade math proficiency has recovered to pre-pandemic levels, but 8th-grade math still lags; reading proficiency has declined in both grades since 2017 and has not recovered. | Ohio-specific | Fordham Institute (Ohio), 2024 NAEP statement | https://fordhaminstitute.org/ohio/commentary/fordham-institute-media-statement-2024-ohio-naep-scores |
| 2024 NAEP results, Ohio-specific reporting | About 38% of Ohio 4th-graders and 31% of 8th-graders still cannot read at the NAEP “basic” level as of the 2024 test — four years after the closures, and the worst reading results in two decades nationally. | Ohio-specific (within national release) | NCES data, reported via Yahoo News/local coverage | https://www.yahoo.com/news/news-not-good-reading-math-050150797.html |
| Lavertu & Kogan (Ohio State University researchers), via Education Next | Analysis of Ohio’s own fall 2020 third-grade ELA test results found a decline equal to roughly one-third of a year’s learning, worse in districts that started fully remote. | Ohio-specific | Education Next, 2/10/21 | https://www.educationnext.org/covid-student-achievement-early-evidence-from-ohios-fall-tests/ |
| Same Ohio data, reported by The 74 | Ohio’s Black students lost roughly a half-year of learning and saw sharper increases in chronic absenteeism than their peers. | Ohio-specific | The 74 Million, 2/8/21 | https://www.the74million.org/article/inequalities-grow-before-our-eyes-alarming-new-data-show-ohios-black-students-have-lost-a-half-year-of-learning-are-missing-more-school-during-the-pandemic/ |
| Fordham Institute (Ohio) | Estimates full academic recovery would require increasing Ohio per-pupil spending by at least $3,000, permanently, relative to already-elevated pandemic-era levels. | Ohio-specific | Fordham Institute (Ohio), commentary | https://fordhaminstitute.org/ohio/commentary/addressing-pandemic-learning-loss-and-then-some-without-breaking-bank |
| Brookings Institution, five-year retrospective | Pooling NAEP, NWEA, Curriculum Associates, Renaissance, and Education Recovery Scorecard data, finds partial national recovery in math but stalled, still-declining recovery in reading five years after the closures began. | National | Brookings Institution, 3/24/25 | https://www.brookings.edu/articles/5-years-after-covid-19-hit-test-data-converge-on-math-gains-stalled-reading-recovery/ |
| 2024 NAEP results (national) | National reading and math scores remain below 2019 levels in every tested grade and subject; the gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students has continued to widen rather than close. | National | National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), 1/29/25 | https://www.nagb.gov/powered-by-naep/the-2024-nations-report-card/10-takeaways-from-2024-naep-results.html |
| 2024 NAEP 12th-grade results | The high school Class of 2024 — the first cohort of seniors tested since 2019 — scored significantly worse in both math and reading than the Class of 2019, showing the closures’ effects persisting through high school graduation. | National | The 74 Million, 9/9/25 | https://www.the74million.org/article/covid-worsened-long-decline-in-12th-graders-reading-math-skills/ |
| Urban Institute analysis of 2024 NAEP 12th-grade data | Notes that learning loss effects “can be lifelong,” projecting lower adult earnings and lower postsecondary attainment for the affected cohort; undergraduate enrollment among 18–20-year-olds remained below pre-pandemic levels as of 2025. | National | Urban Institute, 9/9/25 | https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/new-math-and-reading-data-illustrate-state-postpandemic-high-school-achievement-and |
| Education Recovery Scorecard (Harvard CEPR / Stanford / Dartmouth / NWEA) | The leading national academic tracker of district-level COVID learning loss and recovery; as of its most recent release, recovery remains uneven and incomplete nationally, with high-poverty districts still lagging. | National (district-level data available) | Harvard Center for Education Policy Research | https://cepr.harvard.edu/education-recovery-scorecard |
| CDC Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey (MMWR Supplement, 2022) | Nationally representative survey of high schoolers found 37.1% reported poor mental health during the pandemic; 44.2% reported persistent sadness or hopelessness; 19.9% seriously considered suicide; 9.0% attempted suicide. | National | CDC MMWR, 4/1/22 | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8979602/ |