Bridging the Gap

09 Mar 2021

Bridging the Gap

Business and school leaders address inequities in education

Topics: Education-Learning Technology-Online Technology Organizations-Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact Philanthropy-Giving Impact

09 Mar 2021

Bridging the Gap

Business and school leaders address inequities in education

Topics: Education-Learning Technology-Online Technology Organizations-Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact Philanthropy-Giving Impact

09 Mar 2021

Bridging the Gap

Business and school leaders address inequities in education

Topics: Education-Learning Technology-Online Technology Organizations-Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact Philanthropy-Giving Impact

Illustration by Chris Gash

Long before “COVID-19” became a household word with grave implications, the education sector faced enormous challenges. Opportunity and achievement gaps marginalizing students of color and those from low-income families, funding disparities across school districts, limited student access to technology, and lack of family support and essential services all have had an impact on the world’s children and those who are trying to teach them. The pandemic has laid bare and even exacerbated inequities in education, the long-term consequences of which will be severe. And yet, the crisis has shed light on areas where business leaders can make an important difference, such as supporting schools and programs that enable students to gain skills and talents for productive employment and create a foundation for sustained economic growth that elevates society as a whole.

Harvard Business School faculty, in collaboration with colleagues across Harvard University, have been addressing these issues by conducting research into education reform, technology innovations, and programs that fill the middle-skills gap, as well as recent transformations in the education sector caused by the pandemic. And as educators themselves, faculty members are developing new insights and using novel methods to teach students more effectively.

HBS alumni are also working to mitigate the negative effects of the crisis on children and families in their communities and beyond, both through direct action and through their philanthropy. In addition, with their gifts to the HBS Fund, alumni are supporting an ecosystem that produces both the ideas and the leaders that are transforming education and advancing innovations around the world.