The Puerto RicoDepartment of Education is one of only four state/territory wide public education system in the United States. The PRDOE is the state education agency responsible of managing state-operated schools in Puerto Rico as well as its education system and curricula. The department, headquartered in the Hato Rey area of San Juan, is the result of a United States state department of education. It is also the largest agency of the executive branch of Puerto Rico, with, as of 2013, an annual budget of more than $3.5 billion USD and over 72,000 staff—including more than 41,000 teachers, and as of 2020 the department is the third-largest school district in the United States by enrollment, with over 473,000 students and over 1,500 schools. The department was formerly known as the Department of Public Instruction of Puerto Rico. Under local law, all public schools are required to be licensed by the Puerto Rico Education Council. The existence of a physical plant, the presence of labs and a library, and sanitary conditions, a well as a satisfactory curriculum and properly trained teachers, are all factors considered in the process. The licensing is an important consumer rights issues for parents in both public and private schools. The licensing makes it more straightforward for parents when evaluating schools for their children relating to both quality and compliance. It also clarifies the remedies available to parents where their children's education falls below the expected standard. It was legislated to provide parents of students attending public schools the same level of protection as parents in private schools, by requiring the minimum standards of quality applicable to private school attendees.
History
In 1950, there were 74 districts each managed by a superintendent. Juan Bernardo Huyke who was the superintendent of the Bayamón district in 1950, and also served as the Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico; he wrote a number of books and was a strong proponent of bilingual education for the island public school students. In 2017, Julia Keleher became the department's secretary. That year, due to the Puerto Rican government-debt crisis, the department announced that 187 schools would close and that number was revised to 179 shortly afterwards. Receiving no maintenance once shuttered, the school buildings caused blight in many communities that subsequently hoped to use the school buildings and premises for other purposes. In Lares, it was decided that unused public schools, including one in Piletas Arce, would be transformed for use by the agricultural industry of Lares.
School uniforms
The department requires all students to wear school uniforms and only disallows them for medical exemptions.
