But there was little to no empirical data on why this might be the case. So, Enchautegui, the chief knowledge officer for the Instituto del Desarrollo de la Juventud (translated to Youth Development Institute of Puerto Rico), set out to change that. 鈥淎 lot of U.S. data sets do not include Puerto Rico,鈥� she said. 鈥淔or general U.S. sampling, such as the Current Population Survey, pulse surveys conducted during COVID or government-sponsored longitudinal surveys, Puerto Rico is not part of the sampling framework.鈥�

Enchautegui and her team set out to create the “Socieconomic Survey of Families with Children,” which was conducted between December 2022 and February 2023, carried out through home visits in collaboration with the polling firm Ipsos. The sample represents the population of families with children ages 0-17, with incomes at or below $35,000 a year and with a head of household under age 60.

The report found that the most common characteristics of low-income families with children in Puerto Rico were headed by women who work and participate in social protection programs, and still have difficulties meeting basic household needs. Having a quality job was key to a family’s economic security and lifting the family out of poverty, and yet for 75% of families, not having child care was a major obstacle to employment. The child care obstacles were greater for mothers of preschool age children than those in elementary school or older.

鈥淲hen we look specifically at people living in poverty, it is an overwhelmingly female-headed population, led by single women,鈥� said Enchautegui. 鈥淲hen we talked to them in this report, we asked different questions about barriers to employment,鈥� she said. 鈥淢ost of it came down to access to child care.鈥�

, published in September 2023, is the first empirical data on child care and employment in Puerto Rico. It feeds into both research and policy involving the overall quality of employment and how to promote an agenda for creating employment opportunities for families. And it shows how more women can and want to provide for their families, but need reliable child care to be able to do so.

The lack of reliable child care is the main reason that Kimberlyz Alv谩rez, a single mom of three kids in San Juan, is no longer able to work. For a while she was able to work, and had an aunt look after her kids. But after a time that situation became untenable and Alv谩rez had to quit to watch over her children. 鈥淚t鈥檚 my responsibility and not my aunt鈥檚 to do that,鈥� Alv谩rez said in an interview, translated from Spanish by Caridad Arroyo-Quijano, a research analyst with Instituto Del Desarrollo de la Juventud.

Alv谩rez, who is 27, previously worked at fast food restaurants like Burger King and Subway, either as a cashier or the drive through. She is no longer in a relationship with the father of her children, so she feels pressure to earn an income to support her family. She would like to go back to work, but she could only do so on a specific schedule that could accommodate her 5-year-old at school and her 3- and 1-year-old at Head Start, which ends at 2 p.m. 鈥淚 trust the kids are secure in Head Start, but I don鈥檛 see that as a child care provider, it鈥檚 a school provider. Child care would be after that schedule, and I don鈥檛 know anyone in a child care center that I actually trust to leave my kids with so I can鈥檛 work full time.鈥�

Women like Alv谩rez could benefit from additional child care offerings that would allow them to go back to work and earn a salary to support their families. But Puerto Rico faces additional barriers to providing child care support because of lack of local investment and limitations on federal funding. 鈥淥ur funding is 100% federal dollars,鈥� said Arroyo-Quijano. Unlike other states in the U.S., Puerto Rico does not contribute its own funding.

Arroyo-Quijano explained that there are both mandatory and discretionary funds for child care, but historically Puerto Rico has only received discretionary funds, which are allocated through the Child Care Development Block Grant. Mandatory child care funds are authorized through section 418 of the Social Security Administration and certain funds require state funding for the federal government to match. As a territory rather than a state, Puerto Rico has not had the same safety net programs or funding as other U.S. States.聽Under the American Rescue Plan Act, Puerto Rico started receiving some mandatory funds permanently, but it still cannot access the funds that require state matching.

For Alv谩rez, even the availability of more funds may not change her situation. She wasn鈥檛 familiar with the American Rescue Plan Act funds and how they were impacting child care on Puerto Rico, but she felt that employers weren鈥檛 always aware of the needs of mothers. 鈥淢any of us are the main ones in our family in Puerto Rico,鈥� Alvarez said. 鈥淓mployers need to be more flexible in their work schedule so mothers can have more access to take care of their kids.鈥�

Keleher, who served as Puerto Rico鈥檚 top education official from January 2017 until April 2019, pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services fraud, both felonies. Following her prison term, the once-rising education star will serve a year under monitored house arrest and was ordered to pay a $21,000 fine.聽

Her sentencing marks the end of a yearslong, high-profile criminal probe that took multiple twists and turns since her initial arrest in 2019. In the plea agreement reached with federal prosecutors earlier this year, Keleher admitted to honest services fraud conspiracy when she signed a letter giving a company permission to widen a street onto public school property in exchange for her renting an upscale apartment from June to December 2018 for just $1. As part of a deal with a San Juan real estate company, she received a $12,000 incentive to purchase a two-bedroom apartment in the luxury building for $295,000.聽

She also admitted to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for 鈥渉aving agreed with others to devise a scheme鈥� that allowed a company to subcontract education department work to a 2016 gubernatorial candidate鈥檚 campaign manager. The action violated a contract which said the work couldn鈥檛 be subcontracted.

Appearing in court remotely because of the pandemic, 47-year-old Keleher offered an apology to the people of Puerto Rico 鈥渇or the pain and heartache any of the actions that I took while serving as secretary have caused.鈥澛�

聽鈥淭he children of Puerto Rico are the smartest and most capable of any in the world, and they deserve an education system far better than the one they have,鈥� she said as she audibly struggled to hold back tears. 鈥淚 hope, now that I鈥檝e pleaded guilty to two conspiracy charges, that attention can be refocused to the importance of ensuring that Puerto Rico鈥檚 youth have access to the resources and learning opportunities that they so rightly deserve and the future of the island depends on.鈥澛�

Keleher鈥檚 arrest came three months after her resignation as education secretary, a position that netted her a $250,000-a-year salary, but was marked by significant controversy. She led the school system during the administration of former Gov. Ricardo Rossell贸, after his crude group-chat messages were leaked, prompting public outcry and widespread protests on the island.聽

Keleher took the helm of Puerto Rico鈥檚 education department less than a year before its public schools were shuttered in September 2017 by Hurricane Maria. Keleher arrived with ambitions to reform Puerto Rico鈥檚 lackluster education system and, after the storm devastated schools across the island, she closed hundreds of schools permanently and ushered in its first charter schools and a private school voucher program. Those decisions and others put her in the center of fierce backlash.聽

Keleher and five others were first indicted in 2019 and accused of conspiring to illegally direct millions of dollars in federal funds to contractors who had personal ties to the defendants. About six months later, in January 2020, she faced a second indictment for allegations surrounding the luxury apartment building. Then, an August 2020 superseding indictment replaced the initial charges and accused Keleher of helping a firm led by a 鈥渃lose friend鈥� secure an education department contract by disclosing confidential government documents, including the names and other personnel information of more than 6,000 Puerto Rico school employees. Keleher had initially pleaded not guilty.聽

During Friday鈥檚 sentencing hearing at the U.S. District Court in San Juan, Keleher鈥檚 attorney Maria Dominguez requested that she serve her sentence at a federal prison for female inmates in either Alderson, West Virginia, or Danbury, Connecticut. The billionaire mogul Martha Stewart at the Alderson prison camp. , the Netflix series, is based on a memoir by Piper Kerman, who spent a year in the Danbury prison.聽

Keleher鈥檚 conviction comes as federal officials seek to improve a public school system that has struggled for decades. In September, the U.S. Department of Education to assist local education leaders in several areas, including financial management. In March, Puerto Rico was in federal funds to help its schools recover from the pandemic.

Enrollment in Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools was declining even before Hurricane Maria, but the crippling storm exacerbated an outward migration to states like Florida and Massachusetts. Before the hurricane, Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools served roughly 350,000 students, than it does today.聽

Prior to her arrest, Keleher consistently portrayed herself as a maligned crusader against widespread corruption within an entrenched bureaucracy. During a forceful 2019 speech at a Yale University Education conference, she suggested that she became a victim.聽

鈥淲ho you knew determined what job you had, irrespective of your experience or your capacity to perform,鈥� she told a packed ballroom. 鈥淸Ending that practice] won me armies of people that literally would have been happy to take my head off.鈥澛�

She made similarly forceful statements on Friday after Hon. Pedro Delgado-Hernandez found her guilty. A gag order lifted Friday had previously prohibited Keleher, who has been staying with her parents outside Philadelphia, and her attorneys from discussing the allegations against her.聽

鈥淭he origins of my case have to do with the dysfunction of Puerto Rico鈥檚 Department of Education and political powers that desire to maintain the status quo,鈥� she said in a statement provided to 社区黑料, adding that she ultimately was not convicted on any of the initial charges filed against her in July 2019. 鈥淭here is no allegation I took money away from students, teachers or schools. I would never want to do anything to deprive any child, or any person, of their rights to education.鈥�

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In order to return to school in person post-summer break, were to show proof of receiving at least one dose. Today, of the young population are at least partially vaccinated, a rate higher than any other mainland U.S. state or territory.

The percent of Puerto Rico鈥檚 school workforce of roughly 60,000 was vaccinated by the end of March, within six weeks of opening eligibility to the group. To prepare for school reopenings, teachers were included in the second eligible wave, accessing shots just after health and residential care workers.

The island of about 3 million has boasted higher-than-average vaccination rates since rollout, having finalized its robust mass vaccination plan in 2020, well before distribution. Their work provides an opportunity for a case study of successful adolescent vaccination, as most U.S. states struggle to get shots into their school-age population.

That mass vaccination efforts in Puerto Rico are outperforming mainland U.S. states may come as a surprise to those accustomed to stateside news outlets which the island as being in constant disaster recovery. While Puerto Rico has faced serious hardship, it appears to have pulled together in the face of COVID-19 in a way that has eluded other Americans.

When folks think about highly vaccinated places in America

They think Vermont or CT or MA

Those places are good

But not the most vaccinated place in America

So who’s #1?

Puerto Rico!

But PR has gotten way too little attention

Its worth reflecting on how they did it

Thread

鈥� Ashish K. Jha, MD, MPH (@ashishkjha)

“In Puerto Rico, the pandemic was never politicized 鈥� People were really rowing in the same direction.” Daniel Col贸n-Ramos back in March. Col贸n-Ramos is a professor of cellular neuroscience at Yale University and president of Puerto Rico’s Scientific Coalition, a group of experts advising Gov. Pedro Pierluisi on the island’s Covid-19 response.

As of Sept. 29, 56 percent of U.S. youth aged 12-17 had taken at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, while of adults have completed their sequence. Yet the rates drastically vary by region; . About with the virus required intensive care, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Scholars, residents and local leaders chalk Puerto Rico鈥檚 comparative success up to far-reaching mandates across industries, in a once-public health care system and a common belief in getting students back in classrooms 鈥� by any means necessary.

鈥淭hey urgently needed to get students back to school in person because they couldn鈥檛 take it any more. They were hurting and needed to be there, with their teachers,鈥� said Edgar Bonilla, a single father of three living in Caugus, a mountainous city about 20 miles south of San Juan.

Bonilla, one of several island residents interviewed by 社区黑料 in Spanish, said he witnessed at least five of his children鈥檚 peers leave school last year out of frustration and feeling lost with online learning. Those that stayed may have progressed to the next school grade, he says, but need support with understanding material.

And while there have been a few dismayed teachers since the mandate, he believes 鈥測ou have to see the other side鈥� 鈥� students without needed resources, those who can鈥檛 effectively learn online with audio or speech disabilities or who live with chronic health conditions.

鈥淭he student who鈥檚 unvaccinated, for religious or health reasons, has to take COVID-19 tests the whole week to enter school. Really all have to be vaccinated. There are students with chronic asthma, diabetes, or who are cancer patients like myself,鈥� Bonilla said. The stress of everyone鈥檚 health during the pandemic, 鈥渉as affected me a lot mentally.鈥�

His 14- and 15-year-olds excitedly got both doses before this school year. Their household continues to wear masks outside their home and washes their hands regularly, to protect their unvaccinated 11-year-old sister.

And at the Bonillas鈥� public high school, youth stay in the same classroom all day. Only teachers rotate between rooms, to make any student quarantines smaller and easier to roll out. Lunch is outside, in small groups with open air, or in smaller capacity classrooms for younger children.

Puerto Rico Department of Health鈥檚 extended the vaccine requirement to all school staff and anyone entering school buildings. Families told 社区黑料 enforcement is strict to minimize contacts 鈥� if you forget your vaccination card, for instance, school staff or your child must come find you outside or meet at your car. No exceptions.

The only comparable sweeping K-12 mandate in the mainland is for California鈥檚 K-12 children. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the s on Oct. 1, yet it’s unlikely to go into effect until July 2022.

Some California districts are weighing vaccination mandates because of concerningly among youth. And where they have been adopted stateside, many are not complying and at least two 鈥� in Los Angeles and San Diego 鈥� are being

Three weeks ahead of its deadline, Los Angeles Unified estimated had not yet gotten a dose. The district recently extended its deadline for educators to Nov. 15, fearing the original cutoff would worsen critical shortages, though roughly . And New York City鈥檚 mandate for educators faced protests, legal and union challenges, but now about of their teaching force has gotten one dose.

Overall, there are more states that ban vaccine mandates for school staff (14) than have instituted them (11). In further contrast, when Puerto Rico did announce its mandates, no formal opposition followed.

In late March and April, the island saw an uptick in cases. And though no outbreaks were linked to the roughly 100 schools then open part-time for special education and young children, in an abundance of caution. The closures seemed typical of the system鈥檚 strict approach to COVID-19 safety.

Following a for all government employees, Gov. Pierluisi also this August that many private businesses, including restaurants, salons, casinos and gyms, require all employees to show proof of vaccination. Those claiming an exemption must show negative test results weekly. Businesses must also require that their customers show proof of vaccination or cut capacity by 50 percent.

The constant guidance from health and government officials has helped families return to in-person learning, though some schools are now facing closures amid a wave of unrelated to the pandemic. In addition to dealing with infrastructure damage from years of destructive hurricanes, Puerto Rico鈥檚 circa 1976 power generation units are twice as old as those stateside and due for major replacements.

For many, vaccination is the one factor they can control to keep children in school.

Daniel Pacheco says there鈥檚 a 鈥渞esponsibility鈥� felt among families when it comes to the mandates. His family of four lives in Aguadilla, a city of about 55,000 on the island鈥檚 northwest tip where about 73 percent of the population has been vaccinated, and has seen the pandemic鈥檚 impact firsthand. His wife, Marizabel, is a nurse.

鈥淢y wife and I think the same way, that teachers in direct contact with children have to be vaccinated to avoid the spread,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think [the vaccine] should be approved and given to all kids because there鈥檚 already scientific evidence that it鈥檚 really beneficial for them to get vaccinated.鈥�

Their school hosted a virtual open house before classes resumed to explain how exactly quarantine protocols would work. His two children, ages 6 and 10, returned to school for the first time fully in person this August and will be vaccinated once eligibility is extended to their age group. The Federal Drug Administration will review Pfizer鈥檚 request to extend vaccine eligibility for youth 5-11 on Oct. 26, and authorization may follow in early to mid- November.

While parents in Puerto Rico say there hasn鈥檛 been much widespread hesitation, a recent parent poll across the U.S. revealed roughly 51 percent would vaccinate their children when eligible. Low adolescent vaccination rates raise concern for recently opened mainland schools now facing threats of closure with student and staff quarantines. As of Oct. 10, COVID-19 outbreaks in the 2021-22 school year precipitated about according to Burbio, a website tracking school policies and schedules.

For instance, amid rising Delta variant cases, recent efforts in double the city鈥檚 youth vaccination rate to 55 percent, a rate still leagues behind Puerto Rico鈥檚. The key, local leaders say, was making the shot available at schools, churches and essential community organizations; stopping misinformation and deploying health officials throughout the community to address concerns.

One whose organization distributed vaccines told the Miami Herald that he believes using community groups to administer vaccines has made the difference for small populations skeptical of the government or pharmaceutical industry.

The strategy of spreading secure information at the local level could help Puerto Rico reach herd immunity, local journalist and mother Paola Arroyo said.

Similar to the anti-vaccination camps on the mainland, some of those holding out, 鈥渁re not very aware of how beneficial the vaccine is and are carried away by fake news on social networks or platforms that aren鈥檛 necessarily official,鈥� she said. Others aren鈥檛 vaccinated for religious or health reasons, or lead a kind of natural lifestyle and prefer to build immunity without vaccination.

A 29 year-old resident of Guaynabo, just outside of San Juan on the northern coast, Arroyo stays cautiously hopeful. She regularly sees youth, even infants, wearing masks outside and taking stock of health guidelines posted outside businesses.

鈥淵outh are very aware of the problem that we鈥檙e confronting. They鈥檙e more aware than adults themselves,鈥� she said.

Arroyo had her first child during the pandemic, and though vaccines weren鈥檛 available during her pregnancy, she was 鈥渃onfident鈥� when getting both doses as soon as she became eligible. With encouragement from her pediatrician, she is passing antibodies onto her 9-month-old daughter Valentina through breastfeeding.

鈥淚鈥檓 going to get the booster when it鈥檚 available and continue breastfeeding to protect her,鈥� Arroyo said. 鈥淚 believe in the power that vaccines have and understand that it鈥檚 a social responsibility.鈥�

Julia Keleher, the embattled former education secretary of Puerto Rico who oversaw the island鈥檚 response to Hurricane Maria, has pleaded guilty to two federal conspiracy charges in a wide-ranging corruption probe that scrutinized her business dealings while leading the U.S. territory鈥檚 school system.

As part of a deal with federal prosecutors, Keleher pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services fraud. The agreement recommends a sentence of six months in jail, 12 months of home confinement and a $21,000 fine. The agreement, which a federal judge will weigh at her Sept. 7 sentencing, would settle a yearslong and high-profile government corruption probe. The agreement would absolve Keleher of several other charges including wire fraud, identity theft and bribery.

Though the case has taken several twists and turns in the last few years, Keleher and five others were first indicted in 2019 and accused of conspiring to illegally direct millions of dollars in federal funds to contractors who had personal ties to the defendants. About six months later, in January 2020, she faced a second indictment accusing her of offering up a plot of public school land in exchange for help buying a luxury apartment. In a superseding indictment in August 2020, prosecutors accused Keleher of helping a firm led by a 鈥渃lose friend鈥� secure an education department contract by disclosing confidential government documents, including the names and other personnel information of more than 6,000 Puerto Rico school employees. Keleher had previously pleaded not guilty.

The first charge, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, stems from an allegation that she participated in a bidding process in which she did 鈥渟olicit and demand鈥� that the company Col贸n & Ponce subcontract education department work to the campaign manager of a 2016 gubernatorial candidate. The action violated a contract which said the work couldn鈥檛 be subcontracted. The second charge, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, centers on Keleher offering up 1,034 square feet of public school land to a real estate company in San Juan. In return, Keleher was allowed to rent an apartment from June to December 2018 for just $1. When Keleher ultimately bought the two-bedroom apartment for $295,000, she was given a $12,000 incentive bonus, according to the indictment.

Keleher, once a rising star in education reform circles, entered her plea 聽Tuesday morning from her parents home outside Philadelphia. Her spokesman declined to comment later that day, citing a gag order that forbids the former education secretary from speaking to the press. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney鈥檚 Office in Puerto Rico didn鈥檛 respond to a request for comment.

The white-collar criminal case has received significant public attention, especially in Puerto Rico where her tenure as education secretary was highly controversial. Keleher became Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools chief in January 2017 with big goals of reforming the island鈥檚 lackluster education system. Less than a year later, Hurricane Maria devastated the island and shuttered its public education system. In response, she seized upon the tragedy to close hundreds of campuses and usher in new education reforms, including charter schools and private school vouchers.

Before her indictment in 2019, she resigned from her post as the island鈥檚 top education official, a position that netted her the unusually high salary of more than $200,000. Prior to her arrest, Keleher consistently portrayed herself as a maligned crusader against widespread corruption within Puerto Rico鈥檚 education department.

鈥淲ho you knew determined what job you had, irrespective of your experience or your capacity to perform,鈥� she told several hundred audience members during a forceful speech at a Yale education conference in April 2019. Ending that practice 鈥渨on me armies of people that literally would have been happy to take my head off.鈥�

Before her indictment, former Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossell贸 praised Keleher鈥檚 status as a political outsider from the mainland U.S. Keleher鈥檚 indictment was announced shortly before Rossell贸 that led to widespread protests.

鈥淚f you take somebody inside of the system, it鈥檚 kind of like The Matrix,鈥� Rossell贸 in 2018. 鈥淚t already owns you.鈥�

Puerto Rico鈥檚 embattled former education secretary, Julia Keleher, has been slapped with new federal charges including wire fraud, identity theft and bribery in a high-profile government corruption case that stems from her tenure at the helm of the island鈥檚 public school system.

The new charges come three months after Keleher鈥檚 former 鈥渟pecial assistant鈥� accepted a plea deal in the case.

The new charges offer greater insight into a case that began in July 2019, when Keleher was arrested on allegations that she participated in a conspiracy to steer millions of dollars in government contracts to people with whom she had personal ties. The new superseding indictment, filed on Aug. 10, alleges that Keleher disclosed confidential documents 鈥� including names and other personnel information from more than 6,000 Puerto Rico school employees 鈥� to help an outside company secure an education department contract related to curricular and administrative restructuring. The indictment identifies the outside firm as 鈥淐ompany A,鈥� whose president is Keleher鈥檚 鈥渃lose friend.鈥�

Separately, the new allegations add greater detail to a 鈥渟ham selection process scheme鈥� to steer an Education Department contract to Col贸n & Ponce, a company run by the sister of Keleher鈥檚 ex-assistant. Glenda and Mayra Ponce 鈥� the assistant and her sister 鈥� reached deals with prosecutors in May and pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy. In exchange, prosecutors will recommend to the court that other charges against them be dropped, according to court documents.

Keleher was Puerto Rico鈥檚 education secretary from January 2017 until her resignation in April 2019. Less than a year into the job, Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools were devastated by Hurricane Maria, and Keleher seized on the tragedy to close hundreds of schools and usher in new education reforms, including charter schools and private school vouchers. Those reforms 鈥� and her unusually high salary of $250,000 a year 鈥斅爓ere the subject of fierce condemnation.

In total, the first indictment accused Keleher and five others 鈥� including the Ponce sisters and the former head of Puerto Rico鈥檚 health insurance administration 鈥� of schemes to direct more than $15 million in contracts through corrupted bidding, rather than fair and transparent processes.聽

In a separate indictment, from January, federal prosecutors accused Keleher of offering up public school land in exchange for help buying a luxury apartment in San Juan.

Keleher has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Maria Dominguez, Keleher鈥檚 attorney, declined to comment, citing a gag order that prevents her from discussing the case. An attorney for Mayra Ponce didn鈥檛 respond to a request for comment. Attorney Juan Matos de Juan, who represents Glenda Ponce, declined to comment on the specifics of his client鈥檚 plea deal, citing attorney-client privilege.

鈥淚 can tell you that whatever is [in] the plea agreement is true,鈥� he said. He denied that Glenda Ponce鈥檚 plea prompted additional charges against Keleher. His client is 鈥渁n extremely small fish in that lake,鈥� he said, and the allegations against her are 鈥渁 totally different level鈥� than those that Keleher faces.

As Keleher鈥檚 鈥渟pecial assistant鈥� at the department, Glenda Ponce is accused of collaborating with Keleher to secure a government contract for Ponce鈥檚 sister through a corrupted bidding process, according to the indictment. Then, according to the latest indictment, Keleher 鈥渄id corruptly solicit and demand鈥� Col贸n & Ponce to subcontract education department work to 鈥淚ndividual C,鈥� who was the campaign manager for a 2016 gubernatorial candidate. In exchange, Keleher increased the Col贸n & Ponce contract by $50,000, according to court records.

The latest indictment also names a new defendant, accountant An铆bal Jover, the former president of Puerto Rico鈥檚 Association of Certified Public Accountants, who faces wire fraud charges related to allegedly corrupted contracting between the island鈥檚 health insurance administration and a managing partner at the accounting firm BDO.

The hurricane brought widespread devastation to Puerto Rico and ultimately sparked major education reforms. This summer, the island’s school system came under scrutiny when federal officials indicted Julia Keleher, the former education secretary, in an alleged corruption scheme.

Listen to the podcast to hear Keierleber discuss how storms and scandals have shaped the educational experiences of students in Puerto Rico.

Read more of Mark Keierleber鈥檚 coverage of Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools:

Complicated Crusader to Accused Federal Conspirator: Ex-Puerto Rico Education Secretary Julia Keleher鈥檚 鈥楽urreal鈥� Journey

Julia Keleher Offered Big Plans to Reform Puerto Rico鈥檚 Storm-Battered Schools. She Left Her Post Playing Defense

Lawmakers in Puerto Rico Approve Sweeping School Choice Bill Six Months After Maria, Creating New Voucher Program & Charter Schools

As Puerto Rico鈥檚 Governor Embraces Major School Reform Agenda, New Orleans Offers Inspiration, Caution

Puerto Rico Teachers Fleeing Hurricane Maria Arrived at Orlando鈥檚 Airport With Nothing. They Left With Jobs

Julia Keleher, Puerto Rico鈥檚 former education secretary, was arrested Wednesday on charges that she participated in a conspiracy to steer millions of dollars in government contracts to unqualified, politically-connected organizations. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents arrested Keleher in Washington, D.C., where she was freed pending her surrender to officials in Puerto Rico within the week.

An indictment puts Keleher and five others 鈥� including the former head of the island鈥檚 health insurance administration and an executive with a major accounting firm 鈥� at the center of a conspiracy to illegally direct more than $15 million in federal funds through contracts to organizations with which prosecutors said the defendants had personal ties.

From 2017 until her resignation in April, Keleher led wide-scale education reform efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria shuttered the island鈥檚 schools. She was widely viewed as a controversial lightning rod for her push to adopt charter schools and private school vouchers, in addition to her decision to close hundreds of public schools on the island.

After stepping down, Keleher consistently painted herself as a heroic fighter against the island鈥檚 anti-reform forces. As recently as April, following local news reports that Keleher was under federal investigation, she denied the allegations. In an exclusive interview with 社区黑料, Keleher claimed that she sounded the alarm on irregularities involving a contract, which she said was discovered during an internal audit.

鈥淭he fact that there are investigations into operations in the Department of Education, that鈥檚 not news 鈥� I myself made the referral,鈥� she said, noting that federal investigators have looked into mismanagement at the island鈥檚 education department 鈥渞epeatedly.鈥�

鈥淲hat the Puerto Rico press is reporting firmly is that there鈥檚 an investigation into me,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y understanding is there鈥檚 an investigation into contracting in the department, right, and that鈥檚 been going on鈥� for years, including before she worked for Puerto Rico鈥檚 government.

The grand jury indictment, however, tells a different story.

Eroded trust

In a 44-page indictment, six people were named on 32 counts, including money laundering and wire fraud. Besides Keleher, those charged include 脕ngela 脕vila-Marrero, who formerly led the Puerto Rico Health Insurance Administration; Glenda Ponce-Mendoza, who worked as Keleher鈥檚 special assistant, and her sister, Mayra Ponce-Mendoza, who owned the company Col贸n & Ponce; Alberto Vel谩zquez-Pi帽ol, owner of the company Azur, LLC, a subcontractor; and Fernando Scherrer-Caillet, managing partner of the prominent accounting firm BDO.

鈥淧ublic corruption continues to erode the trust between government officials and our citizens,鈥� Rosa Emilia Rodr铆guez-V茅lez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, said in a press release. 鈥淒efendants Keleher and 脕vila-Marrero exploited their government positions and fraudulently awarded contracts funded with federal monies,鈥� adding that their actions deprived Puerto Ricans of education and health services.

鈥淭he charged offenses are reprehensible, more so in light of Puerto Rico鈥檚 fiscal crisis,鈥� she added.

Officials allege Keleher and others devised a scheme to direct education department contracts to the company Col贸n & Ponce, through 鈥渁 corrupted bidding process鈥� that gave the company an advantage based on personal relationships at a time the agency hadn鈥檛 yet put out a bid for services. The Ponce-Mendozas worked together to secure a contract with the education department, according to the indictment, and Keleher instructed the agency to award the $43,500 deal to the company. That contract was later increased to $95,000, the indictment said, and was used in part to pay the salary of a special assistant to Keleher. Additionally, officials at Keleher & Associates, a consulting firm owned by the former secretary, allegedly helped Colon & Ponce craft their proposal.

At one point, the indictment said, an education department official refused to sign a letter granting Col贸n & Ponce the job because it 鈥渨as the only company not qualified for the contract, and was the worst applicant.鈥�

Meanwhile, Keleher, Vel谩zquez-Pi帽ol, and Scherrer-Caillet were charged with conspiracy to commit theft in an alleged effort to defraud more than $13 million in federal funds through education department contracts to the company BDO between January 2017 and April 2019. BDO subcontracted with other companies to perform the services, in violation of the contracts, including the company Azur, which it granted a 10 percent commission, thus inflating the costs of the services, according to the indictment.

脕vila-Marrero, Vel谩zquez-Pi帽ol, and Scherrer-Caillet were also charged in an alleged conspiracy to defraud more than $2.5 million in federal funds from the health insurance administration to BDO.

The indictment alleges BDO and Azur executives 鈥減aid individuals with government influence鈥� and were given internal government documents to help craft contract proposals. Prosecutors said that several existing government contracts were cancelled or terminated and awarded to companies 鈥渆ndorsed and promoted by individuals with government influence.鈥�

Keleher’s initial court appearance in Washington occurred behind closed doors Wednesday. Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson freed Keleher without bond, on the condition that she surrender to authorities in Puerto Rico on or before July 17, El Nuevo Dia, a Puerto Rican newspaper . Scherrer-Caillet, 脕vila-Marrero, and both Ponce-Mendoza sisters pleaded not guilty in federal court in Puerto Rico; Vel谩zquez-Pi帽ol was arrested in Connecticut.

Attempts to reach Keleher for comment were unsuccessful Wednesday. But Maria Dominguez, one of her attorneys, noted that Keleher isn’t accused of receiving any kickbacks or bribes, making these charges “significantly different” than other public corruption indictments.

While declining to address specifics, Dominguez told 社区黑料, 鈥淲e鈥檙e convinced in the innocence of our client, and we don鈥檛 believe this is a meritorious prosecution.”

In a series of tweets Wednesday, Gov. Ricardo Rossell贸, who championed the island鈥檚 reform push with Keleher, said he was cutting a foreign vacation short in order to return to Puerto Rico to address the charges.

鈥淭he allegations against people arrested today are a disgrace,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淥ur public policy is clear: we will fight corruption in all its forms. No one is above the law. Everyone who fails must face the consequences.鈥�

Rep. Ra煤l M. Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat and chair of the House committee that oversees Puerto Rico, told The Washington Post that Rossell贸 should resign following Wednesday鈥檚 arrests.

鈥淲e鈥檝e crossed that crucible now,鈥� Grijalva told the newspaper. 鈥淭he restoration of accountability is so key going forward.鈥�

Aida Diaz, president of the island’s teachers union, that the charges were “another shame” for the education department and a “sad day” for the public school system.

Prior legal tangles

Wednesday鈥檚 indictment is not the first time that Keleher and the island鈥檚 education department have tangled with the courts. In February, just two months before she stepped down, a judge but quickly backtracked after department officials vowed to release documents related to a separate federal investigation into a tutoring program. In the April interview with 社区黑料, Keleher claimed the documents federal officials sought stemmed from a case that began before she became education secretary. The arrest warrant was issued because officials in the education department failed to furnish the documents, she said, alleging that she was set up by her own employees who didn鈥檛 tell her about the request for information.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 the beginning,鈥� she said, of an 鈥渁ttack on me and on the changes we were trying to implement.鈥�

Some longtime friends of Keleher responded with shock to Wednesday鈥檚 news, defending her as a fierce change agent at the helm of a dysfunctional education system.

Don Yu, who has known Keleher since they worked together at the U.S. Department of Education during the Obama administration and considers her a 鈥済ood friend,鈥� described her as a tireless promoter of improving聽education.

“Julia is a tiger on the behalf of children. She鈥檚 relentless 鈥� extremely smart, extremely hardworking, and all of that on behalf of students,” Yu told 社区黑料.

Yu, currently the chief operating officer at Reach Higher, the college access initiative started by Michelle Obama, said he wasn’t familiar with the details of the case, but “if any of those allegations are true, that isn鈥檛 the Julia that I know.”

He first , in response to what he called knee-jerk reactions from people assuming the worst, he said.

During her tenure as education secretary, Keleher faced protests and lawsuits over her education reform efforts. On Twitter, critics expressed their grievances with the hashtag #JuliaGoHome. Those emotions didn鈥檛 dissipate with her departure. During an April education conference at Yale University, where Keleher spoke about leadership, a student that said reform efforts don鈥檛 fix the island鈥檚 education woes but rather 鈥渕utilate it in order to benefit all but those Puerto Rican citizens who actually rely on high quality public schools.鈥�

In a May op-ed for 社区黑料, Keleher addressed the criticism.

鈥淭here were threats and protests,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淥ffices were stormed and arrests were made. Describing the reaction as resistance to change would be an understatement; it seemed more like a full-on battle to protect the status quo.鈥�

But officials cast doubt on that view Wednesday, saying that Keleher and others acted criminally at the expense of Puerto Rican students.

鈥淚t was alleged that the defendants engaged in a public corruption campaign and profited at the expense of the Puerto Rican citizens and students,鈥� Neil Sanchez of the U.S. Department of Education鈥檚 Office of Inspector General, said during a press conference in San Juan. 鈥淭his type of corruption is particularly egregious because it not only victimizes taxpayers, it victimizes those citizens and students that are in need of education assistance.鈥�

I set two objectives upon taking office. The first was to assess the system鈥檚 functioning, identifying strengths and failures; the second was to determine how the education reform agenda Gov. Ricardo Rossell贸 had presented during his 2016 campaign would be implemented. In short, define the basic operating capacities and figure out how to build upon them.

What I found left me saddened, shocked, disillusioned and appalled. Just two months into the job, it became clear that Puerto Rico鈥檚 nearly 1,300 schools had limited, inconsistent or nonexistent access to:

鈼徛爏tandards-aligned curricular materials and instructional planning resources

鈼徛爐extbooks, workbooks and other learning supports

鈼徛爄nternet, computers and instructional technology

鈼徛爊ursing and health-related services

鈼徛爏ocial-emotional supports and access to counselors, psychologists and social workers

鈼徛爌rofessional development programming for each content area and training in specific instructional practices

鈼徛爏upervision, support and guidance for principals

鈼徛爏ystems, processes and practices that increased opportunities for special education students to participate in the general education program

The Education Department also lacked effective financial management and did not have data systems that could easily communicate with one another, further complicating daily operations and hobbling effective administration. Educator salaries were among the lowest in the nation, and teachers and principals had not received a pay raise in 10 years. Schools and classrooms were unsafe and unhealthy, reflecting unchecked deterioration due to insufficient maintenance. For years, widespread teacher shortages had caused students to miss core courses for an entire year.

Even before Hurricane Maria struck in September 2017, conditions for teaching and learning were subpar, bordering on negligent. Though one might have thought that things could not get worse, the storm destroyed the few books, instructional resources, technology and extracurricular equipment that had been available to teachers and students.

Shocked and embarrassed by the department鈥檚 failure to provide basic educational services, my team and I set out to address the root causes of these systemwide failures by setting an aggressive agenda to change how it operated. We established four goals: 1) improve the return on investment and demonstrate better outcomes for students in terms of academic achievement and entry into the workforce; 2) address the needs of the whole child, including health, socio-emotional and related factors; 3) implement strategies to recruit, develop and retain outstanding educators; and 4) increase transparency and alignment of budgetary resources.

We criticized the status quo. We disrupted existing practices and created new processes. We scrapped outdated policies and drafted new ones that reflected current best practices. We reorganized the Central Office to ensure that responsibility for each goal was clearly assigned. We created seven new regions, each headed by a regional superintendent supervising approximately 140 schools. We demanded reallocation of existing resources. We procured modern data systems and found ways to leverage new technologies. We canceled some contracts and awarded some new ones. We pushed people out of their comfort zones and asked them to stop doing what they had been doing the way they had been doing it for at least two decades.

Our mission was to stop those practices, actions and routines that had systematically denied Puerto Rican youth an adequate educational experience.

Although there was general consensus among parents and community leaders that the island needed a better public education system, many others did not want their daily routines disrupted. Many were incensed by the audacity of an outsider who struggled to communicate in Spanish yet criticized the department, its culture and its way of doing business. Some hurled criticisms of new policies and programs, while others engaged in personal attacks and publicly questioned my ability to lead the system because I was not Puerto Rican. There were threats and protests. Offices were stormed and arrests were made. Describing the reaction as resistance to change would be an understatement; it seemed more like a full-on battle to protect the status quo.

If not us, then who?

Robert Kennedy, Mitt Romney and Ronald Reagan have all made use of a quote attributed to Rabbi Hillel: If not us, then who? If not now, then when? These are key questions for anyone who cares about public education, is committed to the recovery of Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria and of the current fiscal crisis, and believes in equity, fairness and equality.

Over the course of 2陆 years, we laid the groundwork by disrupting the system with more effective practices, a new education law, local autonomy, policy-based budgeting, a clearer picture of the basic investments needed in every public school and a comprehensive strategy to professionalize the workforce. But Puerto Rico and the new team leading the department still have a long way to go to create a school system where students are thriving cognitively, socially, emotionally and physically; teachers perform and are treated as professionals; principals are supported; learning is individualized, relevant and engaging; and technology facilitates access to and exploration of the world.

The Puerto Rican government must confront its chronic underinvestment in public education. At least double the current amount of state funding is necessary to ensure Puerto Rican youth have access to learning opportunities that will enable them to compete with graduates from other school systems. However, the department鈥檚 fiscal management must be closely supervised to ensure its budget is not used to reward political favors and make campaign contributions, as it has been in the past. Historically, the department has relied on contractors to outsource work that could be done by employees, which effectively prevented the creation of strong middle management and delayed the creation of accountability frameworks 鈥� perpetuating the organizational dysfunction and failure to ensure professional responsibility for student outcomes. There needs to be a clear set of performance outcomes for all contracts, and the department must demonstrate how it is achieving a return on each investment. The entire budget should be linked to goals and performance objectives, and middle management needs to be held accountable for funding requests, vendor recommendations and performance outcomes.

Political leaders, appointed officials, unions, teachers and those who do business with the department must put the interests of the next generation ahead of their own. For the recently planted seeds of change to take root and systematic changes to flourish, there needs to be a critical mass of people who are willing to declare an end to business as usual. Everyone who has a relationship with the public school system must embrace a shared responsibility for creating better and more effective ways of leading and managing; demonstrate a willingness to collaborate around a shared goal; reject the continued politicizing of the agency鈥檚 decision-making; and, most importantly, be strong in the face of attacks, build networks of allies and expand the coalition of supporters.

The public needs to hold the department accountable for delivering on the promises of the governor鈥檚 education reform law. Puerto Rico desperately needs alternatives to traditional schools and more choices for parents and students. The island must continue to improve its instructional programming and ensure all students are fully bilingual in English and Spanish. It is paramount that students have access to courses that teach computational thinking and real-world applications of STEM. In order for the public education system to play a central role in Puerto Rico鈥檚 economic recovery, parents, business leaders and community members must have a voice in shaping vocational programs and demand that the department teach skills that ensure students are ready to enter the workforce and/or become entrepreneurs. The public should demand the use of online performance reporting tools that demonstrate what progress is being made in implementing the education law.

A matter of urgency

Urgency can be defined as: 1) importance requiring swift action, and 2) an earnest and persistent quality; insistence. Was it right for me to have had a sense of urgency in leading change in Puerto Rico鈥檚 public education system? Did the conditions really warrant swift action? Was it necessary for me to be earnest and persistent?

My answer to each of those questions is yes. It is not OK for a public education system and its leadership to turn a blind eye to its failures. Elected and appointed leaders, teachers, principals, parents and community members cannot continue to deny the deleterious effects this failed public education system has had on youth, their futures, the economy and the future of the island.

I spent 27 months of my life challenging the status quo, breaking paradigms, creating new models, demanding data and analytics, championing the use of best practices, making room for new ideas and approaches, and demanding professionalism and accountability. I canceled contracts, reduced the number of political positions, and created new performance expectations for teachers and administrators. I made tough decisions despite political risks and retaliation. I stepped on numerous land mines and made thousands of enemies, some known and some unknown. I was loathed by those who had benefited from the influence of politics in public education. But I did what was necessary based on what was fair and just for the students.

I paid a price for that bold action, but I would do it all again. Driven by a sense of urgency, ownership and commitment, I would make every effort to disrupt business as usual because it was undoubtedly the right thing to do.

Though in hindsight, I can identify things that I could have done differently, what I don鈥檛 think I could have done was go more slowly. Had I tried to win over people benefiting from the status quo by using logic and reason to persuade and convince, two more years would have slipped by. For me, delaying doing the right thing is not an option when the fate and future of students who have lived their entire educational experience without a real opportunity to learn rests on my shoulders.

Julia Keleher is a consultant and a member of the National Assessment Governing Board. She served as Puerto Rico鈥檚 secretary of education from January 2017 to April 2019.

Since her confirmation hearing as Puerto Rico鈥檚 education secretary, Keleher faced questions that plainly painted the Philadelphia native as an outsider. On several occasions, she was quizzed on Puerto Rican icons, including athletes and authors 鈥� people, Keleher acknowledged, she didn鈥檛 know. Then came the Twitter hashtag: #JuliaGoHome.

Days after she announced her resignation earlier this month, Keleher faced a similar line of attack while speaking at Yale University. As Keleher spoke at an education conference, a Yale student to attendees with an overarching message: The outgoing secretary will never be Puerto Rican.

Much of the vitriol stems from Keleher鈥檚 dramatic attempts to reform the island鈥檚 education system. Months after Keleher took the helm of Puerto Rico鈥檚 education department, that system was thrust into chaos. In September 2017, Hurricane Maria crashed into Puerto Rico and shuttered the island鈥檚 public school system. In the face of tragedy, Keleher often spoke with magniloquence about her big plans to reimagine public education on the island. In an interview after this month as Puerto Rico鈥檚 education secretary, bringing to a close a two-year tenure, she offered up a different persona. This time, Keleher appeared at times combative, at times defeated as she attempted to defend her overtures as secretary.

鈥淧eople have said to me that Puerto Rico鈥檚 status, and the fact that it is a colony, has a lot to do with how I was received,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very raw and very present for people, so I want to be respectful. But I think it had influence in ways that hurt and didn鈥檛 help.鈥�

Indeed, Puerto Rico鈥檚 relationship with the mainland U.S. has been contentious for generations. An unincorporated territory of the U.S. since 1898, Puerto Rico has seen its residents long forced to grapple with the . Hurricane Maria鈥檚 destruction furthered the pushes both for Puerto Rican statehood and for independence from the U.S., which some residents say has long neglected the island. In the letter at the Yale conference, Yale student Adriana Col贸n-Adorno blasted Keleher for referring to Puerto Rico as her 鈥渁dopted land.鈥�

鈥淭hough being Puerto Rican is not just about where you live and the diaspora is an integral part of the community, a fundamental part of the Puerto Rican identity is a deep shared history of struggle and resilience, which you can never be a part of,鈥� Col贸n-Adorno wrote in the letter to Keleher.

Still, the reforms Keleher implemented after tragedy struck in 2017 would鈥檝e likely been controversial in just about any context. Among grievances, Col贸n-Adorno disparaged Keleher for closing hundreds of Puerto Rico鈥檚 public schools and introducing charter schools.

Keleher said the changes she instituted were necessary to save a system that was in 鈥渇ree fall.鈥� Deep in a financial crisis even before the 2017 storm, Puerto Rico鈥檚 education department closed more than a third of its public schools as thousands of residents fled to the U.S. mainland and student enrollment dwindled. With Keleher鈥檚 lead, Puerto Rico鈥檚 unitary education system was divided into seven regions. Through a sweeping new education law, Keleher ushered in the island鈥檚 first charter school, referred to in Puerto Rico as escuelas alianzas, and paved the way for a private school voucher program.

Those reforms faced steep opposition from some on the island and from progressive groups in the contiguous U.S. Upon hearing of Keleher鈥檚 resignation, national and local teachers union leaders cheered, accusing the outgoing secretary of treating educators and parents 鈥渁s a speed bump鈥� and for implementing reforms that 鈥渃reated chaos and instability for the island鈥檚 320,000 schoolchildren.鈥�

After Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, Keleher was quick to compare its situation to that of New Orleans. After Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans in 2005, officials replaced a battered public school system with one composed almost entirely of charter schools. Students in both school systems had long struggled academically before destruction hit. While reports have found that the reforms led to gains in student performance, the changes were 鈥� and remain 鈥� deeply fraught. Under Keleher鈥檚 lead, school choice made an introduction in Puerto Rico, albeit on a smaller scale.

The disruptor

Keleher paints a different picture of her tenure at the helm of Puerto Rico鈥檚 public school system. She arrived, she said, to disrupt a school system that had violated kids鈥� rights to learn.

When she took over Puerto Rico鈥檚 schools in January 2017, schools lacked textbooks. Campuses were threatened by mold and water leaks, she said. Restrooms were filthy. She viewed the entire education bureaucracy as rife with corruption. Access to technology was limited. But the pushback she received, Keleher said, was indefensible.

鈥淭he defense of making changes was, 鈥榊ou can鈥檛 close our schools because it鈥檚 a right, our kids have a right to go to these schools. You can鈥檛 privatize it because you can鈥檛 change the conditions,鈥欌�� Keleher said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how the bad guy is the one who鈥檚 trying to change the thing that鈥檚 substandard.鈥�

Of course, Keleher couldn鈥檛 have anticipated that a natural disaster would disrupt Puerto Rico鈥檚 entire public school system. But she spoke as education secretary.

The education department provided local schools with more than a million new books. Schools saw technology upgrades, including new laptops and broadband internet. Additional school nurses were hired and trained to address student trauma. Officials created a new coding program and launched a workforce development initiative.

鈥淲e had a clear expectation for what goes into a school: a full faculty, social workers, counselors, librarians, nurses,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e fixed, I think, the root causes for the problems that created the conditions that kids were going to school under. And really, what you need at that point then is a leader who can just execute. You look at someone from maybe inside the system who has those relationships.鈥�

She said her decision to step down, however, was guided by politics. Though she initially hoped to stay at the education department for a decade 鈥渂ecause I know that鈥檚 how long it takes鈥� to see results from education reforms, she said she resigned because she didn鈥檛 want to deal with the politics of election season.

鈥淲hen politics starts to become what鈥檚 shaping discourse, you know, that鈥檚 not what I wanted to get involved in,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to take a political position, and I didn鈥檛 want to be a part of that conversation.鈥�

Initially, Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossell贸 that Eleuterio 脕lamo, who led the education department鈥檚 regional office in San Juan, would serve as interim secretary. But that changed quickly. Instead, the Senate confirmed Eligio Hern谩ndez P茅rez, a deputy secretary, as the interim chief.

鈥榃ill you be ready?鈥�

The fierce politics that have swirled around Keleher since she took the education secretary post didn鈥檛 end with her decision to step down. At first, officials announced she鈥檇 become an adviser to the education department with a $250,000 salary. That鈥檚 the same salary she was paid as secretary 鈥斅燼nother point of contention locally. That contract position fizzled within days, however, after local news reports noted that lawmakers were into her work as secretary and alleged education department contracting irregularities.

Keleher declined to comment on the matter. But this isn鈥檛 the first time she鈥檚 run into an inquiry by federal officials. In February, news reports indicated that Keleher faced an arrest warrant after the education department failed to provide documents related to a federal fraud investigation dating back to 2011 when Keleher worked at the U.S. Department of Education. That arrest warrant was ultimately lifted, but Keleher implied that the ordeal stemmed from sabotage within her own department. Officials in Puerto Rico鈥檚 education department received multiple requests for documents related to the federal investigation, Keleher said, but nobody responded.

鈥淢y employees intentionally did not inform me of that requirement to submit. People knew about it but didn鈥檛 do it,鈥� Keleher said. Failure to submit the documents, she said, was part of an 鈥渁ttack on me and on the changes that we were trying to implement.鈥�

Keleher is now back home in Washington, D.C., where she said she plans to leverage her experiences to help other education leaders implement change, including those who face steep fiscal crises and need to close schools. Her LinkedIn profile says she鈥檚 become an 鈥渋ndependent consultant鈥� supporting policies that 鈥減roduce transformational change.鈥�

If her speech at the Yale education conference is an indicator, she鈥檚 already giving out advice on leadership. As the letter criticizing her circulated, she asked the audience how they鈥檇 feel if they were in her spot.

鈥淚 asked the audience, 鈥楬ow would you feel if this letter was about you?鈥欌�� she said. 鈥溾�橦ow will you feel when the response to you taking bold action is a letter like this? Will you be ready?鈥欌��