America boasts about being the land of opportunity, yet millions of talented citizens remain disconnected from pathways to innovation and advancement. This troubling paradox forms the core of what Dr. Erick Jones Sr. calls “the missing millions” – his term for the domestic talent pool that remains untapped across the United States.
While political debates focus on outsourcing and immigration, Jones highlights something more fundamental: countless Americans whose potential contributions to research, economic growth, and technological advancement never materialize because existing systems fail to include them. The economic impact? Potentially trillions in lost productivity and innovation over generations.
The Brilliant Minds America Keeps Leaving Behind
The National Science Foundation invests hundreds of millions into Engineering Research Centers annually, presumably to harness American ingenuity. Dr. Erick Jones Sr discovered a different reality while overseeing these programs.
“Supporting that engineering ecosystem is crucial, alongside addressing what some call ‘the missing millions’—how we’re recruiting domestic talent from within the United States into these top research fields,” he explains.
The phrase “missing millions” captures the true stakes – missed opportunities for individuals alongside billions in economic output and breakthrough innovations that never emerge because entire communities remain excluded from our innovation infrastructure.
Jones witnessed how these programs, despite substantial funding, often failed to engage diverse domestic talent pools. The result? America competes globally with one hand tied behind its back, leaving vast reservoirs of creativity and problem-solving capacity untapped.
How COVID Forced Working Women to Choose Between Family and Career
The pandemic exposed domestic talent issues that had simmered beneath the surface for decades. Dr. Erick Jones Sr participated directly in examining these problems while serving on a National Academies committee studying COVID-19’s impact on women in STEM.
“Historically, we observed that professional women were expected to assume additional domestic responsibilities when the workforce transitioned to fully remote work,” Jones explains. Career trajectories carefully built over years faced sudden derailment due to childcare and homeschooling responsibilities.
The committee identified specific systemic failures and potential remedies. Jones notes they focused on “enforcing the existing FMLA provisions while acknowledging the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19, were essential. Throughout this difficult period, we recognized the importance of maintaining flexibility for all faculty members.”
Jones connects these pandemic challenges directly to the broader “missing millions” problem: “As we extend these initiatives to diverse domestic communities, particularly rural areas where we’re missing significant talent potential—what some call ‘the missing millions’—the ideas presented here could serve dual purposes: both minimizing negative impacts on existing domestic talent while also helping us recruit more effectively from these underutilized talent pools.”
The pandemic created a natural experiment that revealed how quickly talent can become sidelined when institutional structures fail to accommodate multiple responsibilities.
Beyond Diversity Programs That Look Good but Do Nothing
Throughout his career, Dr. Erick Jones Sr has led numerous diversity initiatives, including helping establish Texas A&M’s Black Former Students Network. His approach prioritizes creating enduring institutional structures rather than superficial programs.
Jones speaks practically about this work: “I want people in my community to thrive while remaining connected—serving as integral members of our team, our nation, and our innovative future.” He frames inclusion as an economic and innovation necessity: “We need every hand on deck, we need the missing millions to be part of what I call our innovation ecosystem in the country.”
This perspective runs through Jones’ work on Engineering Research Centers at NSF, where he observed how these centers attracted diverse investments: “Engineering Research Centers include this component, and more recently, we’ve seen how these initiatives attract not just industry partners within the innovation ecosystem, but also institutional donors. These supporters frequently contribute millions (and collectively billions) of dollars toward test beds that enhance the research capabilities of the institutions conducting the work.”
Why Systems Thinking Matters More Than Quick Fixes
Dr. Erick Jones Sr approaches the “missing millions” challenge holistically, drawing on his industrial engineering background. When describing his methodology, he explains: “As an industrial engineer, I see myself as a systems engineer who examines the entire ecosystem—including environment, people, opportunity, and technology—as an integrated whole.”
This systems’ perspective transforms how Jones conceptualizes talent development and inclusion. Rather than treating diversity as an isolated initiative, he integrates it into broader questions of innovation capacity, economic competitiveness, and social sustainability.
His Jefferson Science Fellowship at the U.S. Department of State deepened this perspective. Before that experience, he acknowledges, “I previously underestimated the importance of politics in policy development. However, incorporating this policy dimension creates a more comprehensive framework when designing systems that people can use effectively and efficiently.”
The complexity of the “missing millions” problem demands this multifaceted approach—focusing on any single aspect risks missing crucial interconnections between educational pathways, career structures, domestic responsibilities, and institutional cultures.
The Hidden Power of Professional Networks That Shape Our Future
Professional organizations and elite networks wield enormous influence over research priorities and educational approaches. As a fellow of prestigious organizations including the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Dr. Erick Jones Sr leverages these connections to address domestic talent development.
“These think tank organizations exert significant influence on policymakers, corporations, and investment capital. Additionally, they help shape the future by providing strategic direction on global trends and investment priorities,” he explains.
This observation highlights how addressing the “missing millions” requires engagement with institutions that determine research agendas and allocate resources. Jones works within these networks to ensure domestic talent development remains central to conversations about America’s innovation future.
How Smart Philanthropy Creates Generational Change
Targeted philanthropy offers another powerful mechanism for addressing domestic talent development. When discussing philanthropic investments in engineering education, Dr. Erick Jones Sr distinguishes between transient research funding and enduring institutional support.
“Research operates on a relatively short timeline—even 5 to 10 years is brief when compared to the centuries-long lifespan of institutions. Philanthropy, by contrast, establishes foundational elements that endure across generations,” Jones notes. Well-designed philanthropy “helps community prosperity within that specialized domain.”
This approach connects to Jones’ “missing millions” concept by suggesting that sustainable, community-oriented investment creates pathways for previously excluded populations to participate in America’s innovation ecosystem. Rather than short-term programs that fade when funding ends, strategic philanthropy builds permanent capacity and opportunity structures.
Jones advocates for philanthropy that aligns with community needs: “I believe that advancement—what professionals call philanthropy—must be structured to ensure donors’ contributions align with the institution’s community-oriented goals and priorities.”
The pandemic exposed how progress can rapidly reverse without deep, structural support. From his varied perspectives across industry, academia, and government service, Jones offers a multidimensional view of America’s domestic talent challenge. His “missing millions” concept reframes inclusion as a central economic and innovation imperative rather than a peripheral concern.
“Domestic talent gets lost when provisions aren’t made for dual roles,” Jones emphasizes, capturing how institutional structures frequently fail to accommodate the complex realities of people’s lives. Addressing this challenge requires reconsidering fundamental aspects of how education, research, and career advancement operate.
Through institutional development, interdisciplinary approaches, and sustainable investment strategies, Jones argues America can begin tapping into its vast, underutilized reservoir of domestic talent—transforming both individual lives and national capacity for innovation.
