School & District Management Photos

Puerto Rico’s Schools, Communities Fight to Recover From Storm Devastation

By Education Week Photo Staff — October 10, 2017 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Less than a month ago, Hurricane Maria slammed the island of Puerto Rico, swamping towns and displacing residents from their homes. Most schools are still closed to students, but many are now being used as shelters for displaced families. Education Week photographer Swikar Patel and reporter Andrew Ujifusa recently visited Puerto Rico to document the island’s efforts to reopen their schools and how residents are working to put their lives back together.

Norberto Collazo maneuvers his horse on a highway near a washed-out bridge in Utuado, Puerto Rico.
Gloria E. Colon, and from left, Glenda Ruiz, her mother, Rosa Rodriguez, and Ruiz’s two sons, Josh Rivera, 6, and Abdiel Rivera, 8, are using a classroom at Judith Avivas Elementary School in Utuado as their temporary home after Hurricane Maria destroyed their house last month.
Located in the in the middle of Puerto Rico’s mountains, Utuado, Puerto Rico, was devastated by Hurricane Maria last month.
Juanita Negrón Reyes, center, at back, principal of the Bernardo Gonzalez Colon School in Utuado, Puerto Rico, works with cafeteria workers to prep food that will be distributed to residents of the hurricane-ravaged town. Closed to students, the school’s kitchen is being used to feed displaced residents.
Jeremy Vasquez collects water at a relief station set up at the Ramon Luis Cabanas baseball stadium in the San Jose neighborhood of Utuado, Puerto Rico.
A relief helicopter takes off from near the Puerto Rico Convention Center in San Juan.
Mariano Ramis de Ayreflor, 18, uses a downed palm tree as a bridge over a crevasse in his yard after running an extension cord to his neighbor so they can share electricity from his family’s generator in Arecibo, Puerto Rico.
Students participate in a “From Reading to Hope” event at Maria Vasquez de Umpierre School in Bayamon. School principal Jessica Hernandez and others organized the event to help students re-orient themselves.
Aliancy Arana, 13, passes by the flag of Puerto Rico at the “From Reading to Hope” event at Maria Vasquez de Umpierre School in Bayamon.
Xoimar Manning, center, reacts as chef José Andrés, right, tells her he will take care of her daughter’s future education expenses. Andrés was visiting the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as part of his effort to organize school cafeterias to feed those displaced by Hurricane Maria.

A version of this article first appeared in the Full Frame blog.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Unlocking Success for Struggling Adolescent Readers
The Science of Reading transformed K-3 literacy. Now it's time to extend that focus to students in grades 6 through 12.
Content provided by STARI
Jobs Regional K-12 Virtual Career Fair: DMV
Find teaching jobs and K-12 education jubs at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Education Funding Webinar Congress Approved Next Year’s Federal School Funding. What’s Next?
Congress passed the budget, but uncertainty remains. Experts explain what districts should expect from federal education policy next.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School & District Management High School Assistant Principal of the Year Focuses on Equity, Student Behavior
Amanda Jamerson focused on addressing student discipline.
5 min read
Amanda Jamerson.
Amanda Jamerson, the associate principal at Wisconsin's Shorewood High School, at the National Education Leadership Awards gala on April 17, 2026, in Washington.
NASSP
School & District Management Opinion A Heartbreaking Meeting With a Teacher Changed How I See Accountability
Too often, principals confuse accountability with fear.
Katy Myers Allis
4 min read
Teachers and school leaders meeting to inspire confidence. accountability doesn't have to mean fear
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
School & District Management Q&A How a School Photo CEO Dealt With a Jeffrey Epstein Conspiracy Theory
Lifetouch's CEO discusses the company's response to social media rumors alleging ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
7 min read
A class portrait session at a New York City middle school.
A New York City middle school holds a class portrait session on May 5, 2021. The school photo giant Lifetouch this past winter found itself swept up in viral social media rumors about an alleged connection to the financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Michael Loccisano/Getty
School & District Management 'Tiptoe and Be Delicate’: How Educators Are Cautiously Broaching the Iran War
Despite the volatility of the topic, classroom discussions of the conflict in Iran have been relatively muted.
6 min read
Plumes of smoke from two simultaneous strikes rise over Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 2, 2026.
<br/>Plumes of smoke from two simultaneous strikes rise over Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 2, 2026.
Mohsen Ganji/AP