of misunderstanding the racial and ethnic impact of COVID–19 expound beyond communities of color such that it would impact all. (16) Race and ethnicity are valuable research and practice variables when used and interpreted appropriately. Health data collected on patients by race and ethnicity will boost and more efficiently direct critical resources and inform risk communication development in languages and at appropriate health literacy levels, which resonate with historically vulnerable communities of color. (17) To date, there is no public standardized and comprehensive race and ethnicity data repository of COVID–19 testing, hospitalizations, or mortality. The inconsistency of data collection by Federal, State, and local health authorities, and the inability to access data by public research institutions and academic organizations, poses a threat to analysis and synthesis of the pandemic impact on communities of color. However, research and medical experts of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, academic health care institutions which are historically and geographically embedded in minoritized and marginalized communities, generally also possess rapport with the communities they serve. They are well-positioned, as trusted thought leaders and health care service providers, to collect data and conduct research toward creating holistic solutions to remedy the inequitable impact of this and future public health crises. (18) Well-designed, ethically sound research aligns with the goals of medicine, addresses questions relevant to the population among whom the study will be carried out, balances the potential for benefit against the potential for harm, employs study designs that will yield scientifically valid and significant data, and generates useful knowledge. (19) The dearth of racially and ethnically disaggregated data reflecting the health of communities of color underlies the challenges of a fully informed public health response. (20) Without collecting race and ethnicity data associated with