The pandemic exposed fissures within higher education that many knew existed but did not actively acknowledge. The pandemic forced everybody to see them. It is known that higher education privileges wealthy students, even before new students step on campus (Jaschik, 2019). Students' mental health is suffering as a result of the pandemic (Zhai & Du, 2020). Students of color are faring worse than their white classmates at this time (Brown, 2020). The pandemic also shone a light on the inherent inequities in classrooms that otherwise were often left unseen. Students returned to homes with limited or no Internet access and video conferencing in shared spaces, often with increased family demands placed on their time. International and out-of-state students were not allowed to go home to their families. Students worried about their access to necessities such as food, housing, and health services. The lesson is clear: not all students had a fair shot at academic success during the rapid transition to online instruction. The post pandemic world will look quite different than the one before March 2020. Higher education must resist the urge to return to the "good old days" that never were.