Using COVID-19 Relief Funds to Boost Equity in Digital Learning

When the scope and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on postsecondary education emerged in the spring of 2020, conventional wisdom was that higher education institutions faced a huge challenge. Fast forward to 2022, and the implications are more nuanced. Thanks mainly to federal relief funds, the fiscal picture is not as dire as predicted, but the challenge of equitably reaching students – particularly those traditionally marginalized by higher education – has grown. Many institutions are now faced with the rare opportunity of having substantial one-time funds that must be spent soon and can be used in myriad ways to support equitable student outcomes, provided the outcomes are in response to the pandemic. This brief provides an overview of how institutions using these one-time funds to invest in digital learning and ensuring it equitably benefits students who have been poorly served by higher education can strengthen institutions today and future-proof them.