In this Ready Living Podcast interview, award-winning problem solver and change agent Art Chang examines one of the most important questions of our time: How can we save democracy and strengthen the moral and civic foundations of our country before it’s too late?
Born in Atlanta, Georgia to Korean War refugee parents during Jim Crow, his early years were marked by isolation, racism, and domestic violence. He transformed those experiences into purposeful action, working towards pursuing a more just and equitable world.
Arguing that democracy isn’t self-sustaining and instead requires participation, accountability, and an unwavering belief in our shared humanity, he is an outspoken advocate for reimagining political, social, and educational systems so they serve all Americans.
He points out how America’s diversity should be one of its greatest strengths, but that fear of difference, the language of “othering,” and the dehumanization of entire groups of people is dividing communities and corroding society.
A former managing director at JPMorganChase and a 2021 candidate for New York City mayor, he has continually sought to repair what’s broken in our institutions. His leadership reflects not just policy expertise, but also deep moral clarity and a belief that the strength of democracy lies in the dignity and participation of every person.
As an institutional entrepreneur using technology to transform broken systems, he founded a dozen tech startups, co-created NYC Votes, an initiative of the NYC Campaign Finance Board, and built Casebook, the nation’s first web-based child welfare system.
He argues that democracy can’t survive polite neutrality, and that preserving it requires taking necessary action. In a time of democratic peril, he challenges listeners to confront the myths that divide us and to imagine an America that lives up to its promise.
Art is a lecturer at Columbia University, Board Chair of the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families, and holds a BA in Women’s Studies from Yale University and an MBA in Finance from New York University.
In this Ready Living Podcast episode, sociology professor Corey Moss-Pech, PhD, dismantles one of higher education’s most enduring myths: that only ‘practical’ majors lead to worthwhile jobs.
He shares details from his new book Major Trade-Offs: The Surprising Truths about College Majors and Entry-Level Jobs, where he followed 91 students across business, engineering, English, and communications from their senior year to their first year in the workforce.
He reveals that while engineering and business majors tend to land middle-class jobs more directly, those jobs often involve routine clerical tasks that leave graduates frustrated and unfulfilled. Meanwhile, liberal arts students, despite having a harder entry into the job market and lower starting salaries, are more likely to apply the very skills they learned in college and report greater job satisfaction.
He also shares how class background and gender shape the college-to-career journey. Competitive-entry programs like business and engineering tend to reflect students with stronger academic preparation and family resources, while open-entry majors like English and communications draw a broader range of students, some of whom face starkly different opportunities after graduation. More privileged students can hold out for the ‘right job’ or accept lower-paid but meaningful roles, while working-class students often need to accept the first job that pays the bills, whether or not it matches their aspirations.
One of his most important findings is the pivotal role internships play in securing full-time post-graduate employment. Through well-funded university programs and employer partnerships, business and engineering majors benefit from what he calls ‘career conveyor belt internships’ that create seamless pipelines from classroom to full-time work. In contrast, liberal arts students often end up in internships that are disconnected from hiring networks. He points out that it’s these structural supports, and not students’ actual skills or drive, that explain the post-grad job divide.
Corey challenges the conventional wisdom about which degrees lead to success. By highlighting both the hidden advantages and overlooked strengths across fields of study, he makes a compelling case for rethinking how we define the value of particular majors in today’s workforce.
