Navigating the COVID-19 Crisis and the Future of Education

To say we are living in unprecedented times doesn’t even begin to capture the disruption that COVID-19 has caused across the globe. As someone who has called New York City home for the last 32 years, I’m acutely aware of the chaotic and devastating impact this virus is having on the economy and our lives.

The healthcare crisis is without a doubt the paramount concern facing our country during this time. However, when it comes to the livelihoods of those not crippled by the virus itself, countless industries from travel and entertainment, to hospitality and services, are trying to figure out how to keep their businesses afloat and workers employed. From where I sit in the business ecosystem, leading a large U.S. based education and technology company, the impact on education has been particularly acute. If we don’t act smart and courageous right now, it could have a lasting negative impact on future generations. 

Tens of millions of students and teachers – from kindergarten to college, and those seeking additional skills training – have had to move learning online in the span of just a few days or weeks. For many of them, this is the first time they are experiencing an online learning environment, which can be a daunting shift for the students, teachers, and at the K-12 level, the parents as well.

It’s given me hope and confidence to see helpers emerge from every corner, town and industry, doing what they can. In the education space, we’ve been humbled to join so many of our peers in doing what we can to support learners and teachers during this transition period. For my company, Cengage, we are helping millions shift to digital learning. In order to help people quickly, this meant offering free access to our learning platforms like Cengage Unlimited and eTexts for teachers and students in the U.S.

Education leaders of colleges and school districts are beginning to plan for a variety of scenarios for the fall period. It is vital that education companies prepare to support the system for any eventuality. Teachers need to feel enabled to provide a quality learning experience regardless of the medium, and students and parents need to feel confident in the value of the education they will receive. 

Like most companies, our employees are quickly adjusting to their new remote work norm. This has allowed us to rapidly mobilize to help students and teachers. In the initial days of our COVID-19 response, we were able to help more than 25,000 higher ed students move online, and at some points, we have shifted as many as 1,000 faculty a day. Even our sales force has gladly transitioned to customer service support to ensure that we can help as many learners as possible during this uncertain time. Our goal is to move one million students online in the next three weeks. 

There are still too many unknowns about the impact this pandemic will have on business and even humanity at large. But I strongly believe that if you do right by people –and in business, right by your customers – we will be ok. And for our country as a whole, history reminds us that if we are courageous and bold, we will be able to take what we learn from this crisis to change many things for the betterment of our citizens that seemed previously impossible. The skills gap has been the subject of much political debate and the source for many of our divisions. Public-private partnerships can now tackle this topic boldly and at scale. Government can direct funding, and education institutions and companies can step up to the challenge of providing affordable and practical outcomes for millions of students.