The pandemic and unrest over racism in society have further exposed existing inequity in higher education and the workforce. For example, survey data from the Strada Education Network show that black and Latino Americans are more likely than white Americans to have been laid off during the crisis, and to have changed or canceled their postsecondary education plans.

To get a broad perspective on these problems, we spoke with Johnny Taylor, president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management. Taylor is the former president and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and was appointed by President Trump to chair the White House advisory board on historically black colleges and universities.

We also spoke with Lorelle Espinosa, vice president for research at the American Council on Education. Espinosa has researched how minority-serving institutions serve as engines of upward mobility, and she's an expert on equity in higher education.

This episode is sponsored by the ECMC Foundation, which supports building a postsecondary education system that works for all learners through its grant making focus areas of college success and career readiness.