Statistics Institute and Instituto Nueva Escuela manage to include Montessori schools and questions about the impact of Hurricane Maria in an important school survey

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IEPR
24 December 2025

PRESS RELEASE

Statistics Institute and Instituto Nueva Escuela manage to include Montessori schools and questions about the impact of Hurricane Maria in an important school survey

The 2019 edition of the YRBSS for Puerto Rico included students from Montessori schools for the first time and asked about the effects of the hurricane on these students

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute joined forces with the Instituto Nueva Escuela, achieving for the first time that Montessori schools are included in the 2019 edition of the survey Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YBSS). The YRBSS is a survey conducted every two years to students in grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 across the United States and its jurisdictions, including Puerto Rico. The questions cover various topics related to students' health and risk behaviors, and as a result, statistics are produced on bullying, electronic harassment, violent behavior, sexual behavior, drug use and on students' eating habits, among others.

In addition, it was possible to include five additional questions, related to the impact of Hurricane Maria on students, from all the schools participating in the study in Puerto Rico. Approximately 1,498 students from public schools in Puerto Rico participated in the self-administered survey, and of these, a total of 110 students belonged to Montessori schools, of which 53% were male, 47% female, and 27.2%, 54.5%, 16.0% and 2.3% were in grades 9, 10, 11 and 12, respectively. Although it is expected that by the end of this year the Institute of Statistics and the Instituto Nueva Escuela will produce an official and detailed statistical report on the results of this survey, here are some preliminary results regarding hurricane questions in students under the Montessori philosophy:

  • 80.4% of students reported that they spent a month or more without electricity in their homes.
  • 98.9% of students reported feeling sad or hopeless after the impact of Hurricane Maria and due to the lack of electricity.
  • 47.1% of students reported that they spent a month or more without drinking water service in their homes.
  • 100% of the students reported feeling sad or hopeless after the impact of Hurricane Maria and due to the lack of drinking water.
  • 77.7% of students reported that they were unable to attend school for a month or more because it was closed or unable to reach or access it.

“These preliminary results show us the enormous impact that the passage of Hurricane Maria had on these Montessori school students. In previous editions, these students, under the Montessori philosophy, were left out of this important survey. However, thanks to the teamwork of both institutes, we have been able to make them visible,” said Dr. Orville M. Disdier, executive director of the Institute of Statistics.

For their part, Dr. Ana María García Blanco, executive director of the Instituto Nueva Escuela, and Mr. Cesar Ostolaza of the Evaluation and Research Division said: “We are very happy with the invitation from Dr. Orville M. Disdier to participate in this study. It is important to have reliable data in the face when making decisions about the practices and services we will provide to our students. Their voices are essential in defining the public policies for which we are choosing. It is imperative to take into account the emotional state of young people, especially based on the natural and social phenomena they have been through when it comes to “building” a school. It is with them and from them that we must build it.”

The Instituto Nueva Escuela is a non-profit entity that seeks to transform the public education system in Puerto Rico through Montessori philosophy and methodology. For its part, the Statistics Institute of Puerto Rico is a governmental entity with fiscal and administrative autonomy with the mission of coordinating the statistical production service of government entities. To learn more about the Instituto Nueva Escuela you can access the website: www.inepr.com. To learn more about the Institute of Statistics, you can access the website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. On social media through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.

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Contacts: Idia M. Martínez, R‐28, 787‐603‐3200, and Lourdes Burgos, R‐27, 787‐562‐2932

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Guánica lost 29% of its population according to the 2020 Census

PRESS RELEASE

PUERTO RICO STATE DATA CENTER NETWORK (SDC-PR)

Guánica lost 29% of its population according to the 2020 Census

A comparison of the 2010-2020 Decennial Censuses also indicates that 74 of the 78 municipalities lost at least 5% of their population in the past decade

San Juan, PR, August 12, 2021 — The U.S. Census Bureau today released more results of the official population enumeration, also known as the 2020 Decennial Census. The published data are related to the information necessary to begin electoral redistribution work in the jurisdictions of the states, Washington DC and Puerto Rico. These contain a little more detail compared to the total population data released last April. The data includes the total population, by characteristics of race and Hispanic origin at the level of states, municipalities, by age 18 and over and for more specific geographical areas such as census tracts and others. The results are as of April 1, 2020, which is the reference date of the Decennial Census. As part of the State Data Center Network of the U.S. Census Bureau in Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Statistics Institute (Institute) presents several initial findings from the results of the 2020 Census:

  1. In a comparison between the 2010 Decennial Census and the 2020 Decennial Census, the results indicate that in percentage terms:
    • All municipalities in Puerto Rico reflected the loss of their resident population, with percentage changes ranging from -0.1% to 29.0%.
    • The municipalities with the highest population loss were Guánica (29%), Maricao (24%), Loíza (21%) and Yabucoa (20%).
    • On the other hand, the municipalities with the lowest population loss were Rincón (-0.1%), Culebra (1%), Naranjito and Barranquitas with about 4%.
    • In summary, some 74 municipalities showed a reduction in their resident population of at least 5% over the decade.
  1. In addition, the population aged 18 and over changed between the Decennial Censuses:
    • At the Puerto Rico level, from 2,822,494 (2010) to 2,724,903 (2020), translating into a reduction of 97,591 people or -3.5% within that age group.
    • At the level of municipalities:
      • 24 municipalities reflected an increase in this population group (18+) that ranged from 0.1% to 9.2%,
      • The remaining 54 municipalities reflected a population reduction (18+) of between -0.1% and -21.3%
      • Population reductions (18+) occurred in the following municipalities, Guánica (21%), Maricao (17%), Mayagüez (13%), Loíza (12%), Yabucoa and Yauco with 10%.
  2. Regarding housing units, the results published at the Puerto Rico level indicate the following totals:
    • 1,598,159 housing units
      • 1,340,534 were busy
      • 257,625 were vacant

“Broadly speaking, population changes in municipalities range from mild or moderate reductions to drastic reductions, with population losses of 10% or more, in most municipalities, in a single decade. The new publication of Census 2020 results begins to highlight changes that have occurred over the past decade. The data, in turn, give way to the beginning of countless possible analyses and comparisons that must be considered when making socioeconomic decisions in Puerto Rico, its regions and within municipalities,” said Alberto L. Velázquez-Estrada, Manager of Statistical Projects at the Institute.

Tables with published characteristics will not yet be published in the U.S. Census Bureau's data dissemination tool data.census.gov. Various data released today from the 2020 Census can be accessed through:

Visualizations available at:

https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/2020-visualizations.html

widget Quick Facts In:

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045219

In addition, as the leading entity of Puerto Rico's SDC, the Institute manages the SDC portal, which contains the main statistical reports and publications of the U.S. Census Bureau on Puerto Rico, specifically those that are most in demand, such as annual population estimates; the Puerto Rico Community Survey and official statistics on Puerto Rico's decennial population and housing censuses, among others. The Puerto Rico SDC portal can be accessed through: censo.estadisticas.pr.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access.

For more information you can visit our website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. In addition, you can follow us on social networks through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.

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For questions:

preguntas@estadisticas.pr

Demographic Registry complies with the order of publishing mortality data. The action paves the way for greater transparency that saves lives after future hurricanes in Puerto Rico.

Demographic Registry complies with the order of publishing mortality data

The action paves the way for greater transparency than

It saves lives after future hurricanes in Puerto Rico

San Juan, PR, August 30, 2018 — The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute (Institute) announced today that the Demographic Registry has begun to comply with the Resolution No. 2018-03 of the Board of Directors of the Institute for the purpose of disseminating a set of data (Dataset) which contains preliminary information on deaths, which will be updated weekly on the open data platform managed by the Institute.

The Institute's Board of Directors had ordered this disclosure as a “measure of transparency” in the face of concerns raised last year regarding deaths that occurred after the passage of hurricanes Irma and María.

The released dataset contains information for each recorded death, which occurred from January 1, 2017 to the most recent week. It includes information on causes of death, month of death, place of residence, place of birth, type of death, sex, marital status, age, education level, occupation, industry, veteran status, and more.

This can be downloaded from the Institute's new open data platform, available here: https://datos.estadisticas.pr/dataset/defunciones-registradas-hasta-la-semana-pasada. The platform also allows you to preview the data and also allows you to develop applications that connect to the data set automatically through the use of Application Programming Interface (API).

Although the Resolution of the Board of Directors mandates that this data set be updated daily, the Department of Health and the Institute of Statistics agreed to update it weekly, as long as there is no emergency declaration. If an emergency is declared in the future, the Demographic Registry will be updating the data daily, to facilitate the analysis of these data that can save lives. In fact, this protocol should be included in the Department of Health's next Emergency Plan.

“Right now, more than ever, it has become evident the importance of the accessibility of statistical data to determine trends during specific times or phenomena, resulting in more assertive responses to an emergency. The certainty and transparency of this type of information could make the difference between life and death. Both the Department of Health and Governor Ricardo Rosselló's administration have always promoted free access to information, especially at a time when we seek to perfect every aspect of our contingency plans for times of emergency. This initiative, which unites the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics and the Demographic Registry, points in that direction. We are pleased that it is materializing and that steps are being taken in the data collection process, for the benefit of Puerto Rican citizens,” said the Secretary of Health, Dr. Rafael Rodríguez Mercado.

For his part, the Executive Director of the Institute, Dr. Mario Marazzi-Santiago, stressed: “The Department of Health's mortality statistics take a long time to prepare and publish. The newly published data help to perceive mortality in the short term, without the extensive purification protocol required by official statistics. In this way, we demonstrate our Government's commitment to transparency, and we are also preparing to respond more quickly to the mortality that may occur after the next hurricane. The data will be available even if there is no regular electric power service in Puerto Rico. This disclosure literally saves lives. It's the least we can do to recognize and honor the memory of the thousands of people who died as a result of Hurricane Maria.”

The announcement opens the way for the filing of a lawsuit that the Institute had filed in May of this year to force the Department of Health to provide this data on a recurring basis in order to comply with Resolution No. 2018-03 of the Institute's Board of Directors. In accordance with its Organic Law, the Institute has the power to demand or require from any governmental body the information or data it deems necessary for statistical purposes.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access. The Institute has in its inventory, accessible through www.estadisticas.pr.gov, about 300 statistical products. In addition, it is a custodian and provides access to over 100 data sets or “data sets” through www.data.pr.gov and to over 40 tables and more than 6 thousand indicators through: www.indicadores.pr.

In addition, as the leading entity of the SDC in Puerto Rico, the Institute manages the SDC portal, which contains the main statistical reports and publications of the U.S. Census Bureau on Puerto Rico, specifically those that are most in demand, such as annual population estimates; the Puerto Rico Community Survey (Puerto Rico Community Survey) and official statistics on Puerto Rico's 10-year population and housing censuses, among others. The Puerto Rico SDC portal can be accessed through: https://censo.estadisticas.pr/.

For more information you can visit our website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. In addition, you can follow us on social networks through Facebook accounts (statistics.pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico).

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Press Contact: Sandra Morales Blanes/(787) 688-0401