The University of Puerto Rico is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 44,200 students and approximately 4,450 faculty members. UPR has the largest and most diverse academic offerings in the commonwealth, with 472 academic programs of which 32 lead to a doctorate.
Education in Puerto Rico is overseen by the Department of Education of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Education Council. The Department oversees all elementary and secondary public education while the Council oversees all academic standards and issues licenses to educational institutions wishing to operate or establish themselves in Puerto Rico.
The Puerto Rico Department of Education is one of the statewide public education system in the United States, with. The PRDOE is the state education agency in charge of managing public schools in Puerto Rico as well as the island's education system and curricula. The department, headquartered in Hato Rey, 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 2019, 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 276,413 students and 857 schools.
Carlos A. Chardon López is a Puerto Rican educator and public servant. He has served twice as Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Education and subsequently served under Secretary of State Kenneth McClintock as the first and only Assistant Secretary of State for Governmental Affairs.
Mariano Villaronga Toro was a Puerto Rican educator and Commissioner of Public Instruction in Puerto Rico from 1946 to 1957. Under his leadership as Commissioner of Public Instruction, three major institutions that still stand today were put in place: the Department of Education Printing Press, the public radio and television educational service, and the Free School of Music system. Most importantly, during his tenure Spanish was adopted as the official language of instruction in all levels of the Puerto Rico public education system, displacing instruction in English which had been pushed by the previous governments of Puerto Rico under US-appointed colonial governors.
The Puerto Rico Department of Consumer Affairs (PRDCA) or — is the executive department of the government of Puerto Rico responsible of defending and protecting consumers in the U.S. Commonwealth. The department is headed by a Cabinet-level Secretary, appointed by the Governor and subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
Jesús Rivera Sánchez is a Puerto Rican government official who served as the Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Education from 2010 to 2011.
Edward Moreno Alonso is a Puerto Rican educator and former Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico.
The Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico is the highest-ranking officer in the executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico after the governor and the secretary of state. The Chief of Staff leads the Secretariat of Governance and is charged with managing and overseeing almost all executive agencies while assisting and advising the governor.
The secretary of consumer affairs of Puerto Rico is responsible of defending and protecting consumers in Puerto Rico and leads the Department of Consumer Affairs (DACO). The position is appointed by the governor with advice and consent from the Senate. The secretary from 2013 to 2016 was Nery Adamés Soto. The current secretary is Lisoannette González Ruiz.
The Secretary of Corrections and Rehabilitation of Puerto Rico is responsible for structuring, developing, and coordinating the public policies of Puerto Rico over its correctional system and the rehabilitation of its adult and young population.
Rafael Román Meléndez is a teacher and school principal, and was the Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico. Before being appointed as Secretary, Román served as President of the Organization of School Administrators and Principals of Puerto Rico. He obtained a bachelor's degree in Secondary Education and Teaching from the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey in 1999, and a Master of Education from the Metropolitan University in 2005.
Rafael Rodríguez Mercado is a Puerto Rican neurosurgeon and military officer. He was the Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico from 2017 until his resignation in 2020. Rodríguez Mercado previously served as chancellor of the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus.
Carlos José Saavedra-Gutiérrez is a Puerto Rican lawyer and current counsel at Jackson Lewis. Saavedra served in several high profile positions within the Government of Puerto Rico, including Secretary of Labor and Human Resources. Saavedra also served as Chief Legal Officer of the Fiscal Agency and Financial Advisory Authority of Puerto Rico, where he supervised and coordinated Puerto Rico's legal strategy as part of the largest bankruptcy-like municipal restructuring in the history of the United States. Saavedra previously served as Secretary of Labor and Human Resources of Puerto Rico, from 2017 to 2019. Appointed by Governor Ricardo Rosselló, Saavedra was the youngest individual to lead the Puerto Rico Department of Labor. As Secretary, Saavedra oversaw the implementation of a labor reform that amended and modernized much of the labor and employment legislation in Puerto Rico. During his tenure, Puerto Rico achieved the lowest unemployment rate in the historical series as tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Conversely, during his time as Secretary he was criticized by labor unions and groups opposed to the implementation of the labor reform.
Omar J. Marrero Díaz is a Puerto Rican government official serving as the Secretary of State of Puerto Rico, which fulfills the role of a lieutenant governor.
The government of Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia was formed in the weeks following the 2020 Puerto Rico gubernatorial election as he released a list of nominees for most of the positions before his swearing in on 2 January 2021. His New Progressive Party (PNP) not having a majority in either chamber of the 19th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico meant that he would have to further negotiate the approval of his nominees with the opposition parties that hold control of the legislature.
The government of Wanda Vázquez Garced was formed the week following the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares as a result of the massive protests resulting from the Telegramgate scandal, and a Supreme Court decision that vacated the office from an invalid occupant.
This second government of Luis Muñoz Marín followed his reelection after the enactment of the 1952 Commonwealth Constitution. In many ways it was a continuation of the previous government, with some changes in key positions such as the Secretary of Justice, and decreased control of the Senate of Puerto Rico and House of Representatives of Puerto Rico by virtue of the expansion of the Legislative Assembly's chambers and the effects of Article III, Section 7 of the Constitution of Puerto Rico (1952).
The government of Ricardo Rosselló Nevares was formed in the weeks following the 2016 Puerto Rico gubernatorial election and ended prematurely on the first week of August 2019.
The government of Alejandro García Padilla was formed in the weeks following the 2012 Puerto Rico gubernatorial election and was sworn in initially in January of 2013, with some confirmations coming in later. It featured a pro-Independence secretary, a non-partisan Secretary of Governance, as well as the continuation of the previous PNP administrations' Commissioner of Safety and Public Protection.
