As our country is on the brink of a new presidential administration and new Congress, amid a global pandemic, the importance of investing in and strengthening our nation's postsecondary education system has never been more important. Concerns over college access, affordability, and transparency are colliding with the growing demand in the workforce for college educated individuals, all while racial disparities in college access and attainment are becoming more stark than ever. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these issues and created additional concerns, but also presents an opportunity, along with the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, to examine and re-evaluate our country's higher education policies. Action -- in some cases immediate -- is needed to refocus, reinvest, and recalibrate our country's policies around postsecondary education. Robust, streamlined student aid policy must play a central role in this effort, and we advise the incoming Biden administration and 117th Congress to strongly consider and prioritize the following policy recommendations as a way to strengthen access to, and success in, higher education for our nation's students.