Education

We seek to create equitable advancement opportunities for Black and African Americans through education, skill development and credentials that meet the talent needs of businesses.

Black Americans are faced with barriers to education, employment and advancement. There is often less access to post-secondary educational opportunities, as the traditional higher education system and non-traditional post-secondary programs are costly and challenging for adults to complete without support. According to McKinsey, within the workforce, 43 percent of Black private-sector workers make less than $30,000 per year, compared with 29 percent of non-Black employees. Black Americans are also underrepresented in high demand jobs, such as software development or engineering. According to Pew Research, Black Americans make up only 9 percent of STEM workers.

Our philanthropy is focused on two areas: equitable advancement through upskilling and strengthening talent pipelines.

The center complements the work of the education shared value network (SVN) by addressing barriers to education and advancement at a societal level. To build upskilling efforts, the center is driving equitable training and advancement programs for Black workers without college degrees into more senior-level positions. The center is also investing in initiatives that develop robust talent pipelines for both traditional and non-traditional post-secondary Black talent, focusing on high demand, higher-wage jobs.