QCC Grad Has Seat at DHE Racial Equity Table Discussions

On September 10, QCC alumnus and new Foundation Board member Jorgo Gushi was part of the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education’s webinar, as the DHE and the Lumina Foundation announced a comprehensive new plan to achieve racial equity for students attending Massachusetts public colleges and universities. Others invited to the webinar included: Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, Senator Elizabeth Warren and Massachusetts Secretary of Education James Peyser.

As Chair of the Student Advisory Council to the MA Board of Higher Education, Mr. Gushi was invited to give his viewpoint on equity and equality among the student population of public higher education in Massachusetts. He stressed the need for more investments in higher education to address racial inequities/barriers to student success.

“...I hope the administration and legislature will reexamine funding public higher education institutions and its students as we seek to produce more equity-oriented outcomes. Now is not the time to cut higher education’s budget, on the contrary, it is time to put hands deep in pockets to keep Massachusetts’s community colleges, state universities and the University of Massachusetts up and running,” Mr. Gushi said. “We must be willing to look at student outcomes and disparities at all educational levels disaggregated by race and ethnicity as well as socioeconomic status. We ought to recognize that individual students are not responsible for the unequal outcomes of groups that have historically experienced discrimination and marginalization in the United States. Respect for the aspirations and struggles of students who are not well served by the current educational system, is essential.”