- Andy Ogles consistently opposed school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing they caused more harm than good by disrupting families, working parents, and the economy (Daily Herald, Sep 2020).
- He strongly advocated for keeping schools open unless there was an "extreme reason to close," framing in-person education as essential for a return to normalcy (Daily Herald, Aug 2020).
- Ogles criticized the Tennessee Child Wellbeing Task Force’s student checks, voicing concerns about privacy, parental rights, unqualified personnel, and vaccination reviews, describing the plan as an "Orwellian" overreach (Daily Herald, Aug 2020).
- He was a vocal opponent of mask mandates in schools, praising Maury County for not requiring masks and criticizing both Governor Lee and the Williamson County School Board for permitting or enforcing mandates, which he characterized as political rather than science-driven (Daily Herald, Aug 2021; Daily Herald, Aug 2021).
- Ogles’ positions display vulnerability to criticism regarding public health priorities, especially for potentially downplaying mitigation measures intended to prevent COVID-19 spread in school settings.
September 2020: Andy Ogles Criticized School Closures, Citing Disadvantages To Families And Economy According to Daily Herald, '"I think we are doing more harm than good by closing our schools," Ogles said. "We are dismissing 1,200 students over 14. I am not sure how that math works. You are disrupting families, you are disrupting our economy."' [Daily Herald, 9/16/20]
September 2020: Andy Ogles Argued School Closures Disrupted Working Parents According to Daily Herald, 'He said said sending children home can disrupt households with parents struggling to find a way to continue working with [children] at home.' [Daily Herald, 9/16/20]
April 2020: Andy Ogles Stated School Reopening Would Be Driven By COVID-19 Data According to The Daily Herald, 'Part of that is going to be driven by the data,' Ogles said. 'We will push that out to you as soon as we know.' [Daily Herald (Columbia, Tennessee), 4/14/20]
September 2020: Andy Ogles Advocated For Keeping Schools Open During Pandemic According to Daily Herald, 'Ogles said he continued to advocate that schools should remain open.' [Daily Herald, 9/16/20]
September 2020: Andy Ogles Advocated For Keeping Kids In School Unless There Is An Extreme Reason To Close According to Daily Herald, '"Let's get our kids in school," Ogles said. "Let's keep the schools open unless there is an extreme reason to close them."' [Daily Herald, 9/16/20]
August 2020: Andy Ogles Stated Return To School Was Step Toward Normalcy According to Daily Herald, "The mayor said a return to school will serve as another step toward normalcy. 'We have to move towards normal,' Ogles said. 'COVID is not going away.'" [Daily Herald, 8/12/20]
August 2020: Andy Ogles Opposed Tennessee Child Wellbeing Checks According to Daily Herald, "Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles and other conservative leaders have taken a staunch opposition against the state's newly formed Child Wellbeing Task Force and its plan to hold checks of more than 900,000 students." [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
August 2020: Ogles Criticized Qualifications of Wellbeing Check Personnel According to Daily Herald, "Ogles said he was concerned about who would be conducting the wellbeing checks. He said requirements for the role include being a minimum age of 20 and having gone through a training program to carry out the statewide survey of student's heath at home and in school. 'This is unacceptable,' Ogles said last week." [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
August 2020: Ogles Expressed Privacy and Parental Rights Concerns According to Daily Herald, "The county mayor has said he was concerned that families could be reported to the state. 'It's confidential unless they decide,' Ogles said." [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
August 2020: Ogles Described Wellbeing Checks Program as Stopped According to Daily Herald, 'Ogles described the letter as a victory. "The liberal and Orwellian child wellbeing Checks plan has been stopped," Ogles said in a social media post on Saturday. "This ill contrived program is a Trojan Horse assault on privacy and parental rights."' [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
August 2020: Ogles Objected to Inclusion of Vaccination Reviews in Checks According to Daily Herald, 'Ogles also shared concern that the check includes reviews of a child's vaccination record. "This has gone too far," Ogles said. "The leveraging of COVID-19 to systematically removing our liberties has got to stop. This is a Trojan horse. It will not be tolerated in Maury County. I will not comply as a county mayor, and I will not comply as a father."' [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
August 2020: Ogles Reported Discussion with Gov. Lee After Concerns Raised According to Daily Herald, 'After sharing his initial comments, Ogles said he spoke with Lee, stating that the intent of the checks were not "what they appeared to be and they are taking corrective action."' [Daily Herald, 8/14/20]
2021: Andy Ogles Criticized Williamson County Board Of Education For Mask Mandate According to Daily Herald, "Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles, who never placed a countywide mandate on face coverings since COVID-19 emerged in Tennessee, said he is disappointed in the Williamson County Board of Education. 'About 800 to 1,000 parents showed up to the meeting, said 'don't mask our students,' and they did not listen,' Ogles said. [...] 'This was a political stance by the school board. It was reprehensible.'" [Daily Herald, 8/15/21]
2021: Andy Ogles Criticized Governor Lee For Allowing School Mask Mandates According to Daily Herald, "Ogles criticized Lee in a proclamation on Wednesday for allowing school boards to mandate masks on campuses. In the proclamation, he suggested that the legislature hold a special session to protect the freedoms of Tennesseans, regarding mask and vaccine mandates." [Daily Herald, 8/15/21]
2021: Andy Ogles Praised Maury County School Board For Not Mandating Masks According to Daily Herald, 'Ogles complimented the Maury County School Board for its decision not to require masks in schools throughout COVID-19. "I think Maury County has really stood up and led through COVID," he said. "We've kept things open, the school board respected the wishes of parents. The Williamson County school board did not."' [Daily Herald, 8/15/21]
2021: Andy Ogles Criticized Williamson County School Board For Mandating Masks According to Daily Herald, "Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles, who never placed a countywide mandate on face coverings since COVID-19 emerged in Tennessee, said he is disappointed in the Williamson County Board of Education. 'About 800 to 1,000 parents showed up to the meeting, said 'don't mask our students,' and they did not listen,' Ogles said. 'They presented science-based statements. The survival rate for children is almost 100% unless they have a comorbidity. This was a political stance by the school board. It was reprehensible.'" [Daily Herald, 8/18/21]
2021: Andy Ogles Praised Maury County Schools For Not Mandating Masks According to Daily Herald, 'Ogles complimented the Maury County School Board for its decision not to require masks in schools throughout COVID-19. "I think Maury County has really stood up and led through COVID," he said. "We've kept things open, the school board respected the wishes of parents. The Williamson County school board did not."' [Daily Herald, 8/18/21]