Higher Education's Response to Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) from an Equity Framework

Many countries have temporarily shut down many anchor institutions during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The deleterious effects of the COVID-19 pandemic is nowhere more apparent than in the higher education sector. The respiratory disease compelled many colleges and universities to cancel in-person classes, close residential halls and food courts, suspend in-person events and athletic competitions, and shift to remote learning and work arrangements mid-way through the spring terms. Campus leaders are grappling everyday with how to properly direct their students, faculty, and staff through such unprecedented times. While many college campuses announced plans to reopen in the fall with social distancing policies in place according to municipal, state, and federal guidelines, other institutions are considering virtual or hybrid (a combination of virtual and in-person) classroom formats.

Below is a list of relevant online resources that will aid provosts, senior administrators, department chairs, faculty, and student affairs professionals during this catastrophic crisis. It is essential that colleges and universities include an equity framework in their COVID-19 response. Our most vulnerable populations--African Americans, Latino/as, senior citizens, and the economically disadvantaged--are at a higher risk of contracting and dying from the disease. Click here to read an overview of federal resources to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Higher Education Guidance, Resources, and News

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Interim Guidance for Administrators of US Institutions of Higher Education
• U.S. Department of Education: COVID-19 ("Coronavirus") Information and Resources for Schools and School Personnel
• American Association of University Professors (AAUP): Coronavirus Resources: Statements, Guidance, Webinars, Chapter Action, and Collaboration with American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
• Midwest Higher Education Council: Coronavirus (an expansive listing of federal, state, and association responses to COVID-19)
• National Conference of State Legislatures: Higher Education Responses to Coronavirus (COVID-19)
• Inside Higher Ed: Live Updates: Latest News on Coronavirus and Higher Education

COVID-19 and Equity Considerations

• American Medical Association: COVID-19  health equity resources 
• American Public Health Association: COVID-19 and Equity
• Center for Urban and Racial Equity: Equitable Response Community Commons
• The Education Trust: A Higher Education Equity Agenda in Response to COVID-19
• National Association for the Advancement of Colored People: Coronavirus Equity Considerations
• Inside Higher Ed: The Challenge of Equity in Higher Education Under COVID-19