‘Government support is going to be vital’

AS COVID-19 SPREADS across the U.S., the West’s institutions of higher education are racing to adapt, from moving classes online to closing dorms and reimbursing students for housing and dining.

But not all schools have the resources to respond. Minority-serving institutions, or MSIs, which enroll significant proportions of non-white students, can be crucial gateways to the middle class for students of color. According to research by the American Council on Education, MSI students have higher economic mobility rates than non-MSI students. This means that students from the lowest-income families are more likely to attain above-average incomes if they attend MSIs. But the pandemic is increasing the strain on