We Can’t Educate Our Way to Racial Economic Equity
Black workers are still being left behind by their White peers regardless of their level of education. Ensuring their success requires a bolder approach.
And now the work must begin.
Photographer: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Last month, Senate Democrats released a $3.5 billion budget package that they hope to pass alongside a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill later this summer. Advocates for educational equity applauded the specter of free community college and a long-overdue expansion of the Pell program that has, for decades, formed the cornerstone of college access for Black students. The inclusion of training dollars in the infrastructure legislation is key to making good on the bill’s economic — and equity — intent.
With good reason: Employment rates and wages increase among Black workers along with level of educational attainment. Black workers with some college or an associate’s degree are more likely to secure a good job than are those with no education beyond high school.