Communities Educommunicate: Rescued Schools Driving Change in Puerto Rico

According to Serrano Abreu, Rivera Bonilla, Colón Martínez, and López Rosa (2025), rescuing a space inspires a collective practice that allows to recover and liberate experiences. This is the case for various school structures in Puerto Rico that ceased operations between 2013 and 2020 after the government mandated their closures, greatly impacting the surrounding communities as a result. Rivera Rivera (2025) reveals that there are 40% less operating schools than before, equivalent to 600 educational institutions having shut down across the 78 municipalities of the archipelago. They closed due to low student enrollment rates, tied to low birth rates and an aging population in Puerto Rico. No conversations took place with members of the community to determine what would become of the abandoned structures. However, after hurricane María ravaged the island in 2017, some communities opted to occupy these spaces to better manage the emergency. As such, these abandoned structures have now been brought back to life, serving a new purpose for the people.

Second Gathering of Rescued Schools in Puerto Rico at La Conde, Carolina.

Media Literacy: Access and Connectivity References

Different social actors—with expertise in demography, economy, anthropology, sociology, research, among other areas—have gathered data, along with community leaders, and have put forth a possible diagnosis. On the one hand, we observe an aging population in Puerto Rico. As the quality of life continues to decline on the archipelago, people are deterred from having children. On the other hand, the absence of social and public policies to support young people hinder their opportunities for growth and social well-being. These challenges, however, have not stopped members of the community from taking action and coming together to develop solutions.

Communication and education are connected actions. Therefore, a new practice emerges: educommunication. Educommunication’s aim is to educate others on digital media so they are able to properly navigate these instruments and make informed decisions. We have noticed that this argument of an aging population in Puerto Rico has been used, repeated, and interpreted by analysts, influencers, and commentators on social media. In many instances, the content created attempts to push new narratives to favor the private sector and other enterprises that look to produce a business and mobilize consumption around our senior population. It is no lie that Puerto Rico’s biggest age groups are composed of adults and, more specifically, the elderly, but that does not mean that they do not have the capacity to learn. For example, mobile devices (cellphones) have become more accessible and affordable, allowing people to communicate with one another through the Internet. According to Estudios Técnicos Inc. & AARP-Puerto Rico (2022), 71.7% of people older than 55 access the Internet in Puerto Rico. Consequently, even though older people might require technical assistance when using these devices, there is still a large population of adults and seniors relying on these gadgets to stay informed. Data from Maddalena’s study (2025) indicates that 85% of the total population in Puerto Rico has Internet connection. This means that most people are able to communicate with one another and many, stemming from all generations, are interested in exchanging knowledge and skills concerning communication in digital formats. This is a clear example of shared media literacy.

Intergenerational Communication: Experiences Taking Place in Occupied Schools After Shutting Down

Today, these abandoned educational institutions have become an asset to municipalities and non-profit organizations thanks to collaborations and lease agreements for the co-managing of the buildings. Some structures have been sold or are in the process of being sold. We also recognize that some of these occupied spaces operate without having ties to the government. The phenomenon has been documented and illustrates a series of community initiatives taking place throughout the island. Some of these projects are: Taller Comunidad La Goyco, at the old Dr. Pedro G. Goyco School in Santurce; Fundación Bucarabón, at the old Segunda Unidad Francisco Vicenty School in Maricao; Taller Bomba Con Conciencia, which operates along with other initiatives at the José Choudens School in Arroyo; the Centro de Transformación Comunitaria, co-managed by the entity ARECMA; the Centro de Apoyo Mutuo Bucarabones – CAMBU, at the old elementary school of the Bucarabones neighborhood in Las Marías; and the journal Esencia, headquartered at the old Tallaboa Alta School in Peñuelas along with some other projects.

Other initiatives worth mentioning are: the Comité de Desarrollo Social y Cultural en Daguao, Inc., before the Segunda Unidad Daguao School in Naguabo; Proyecto Ángeles Inc. at the old Doroteo Peña Mora School, located in the Calabazas neighborhood of Yabucoa; La Conde at the old Carlos Conde Marín School in Carolina; the Centro de Apoyo Mutuo Jíbaro Bartolo at the old Segunda Unidad Bartolo School in Lares; Piñones Aprende y Emprende – PAYE, previously known as the Emiliano Figueroa Torres School in Loíza; the Centro Comunitario Mamey at the old José de Diego School in Guaynabo; in San Sebastián; the Centro de Apoyo Mutuo Pepinianos Unidos – CAMPU; el Centro Cultural Multidisciplinario de Juan Martín , at the old Carolina G. de Veve Elementary School in Luquillo; and the Iniciativa Comunitaria Agrocultural at the old Sumidero 1 School in Aguas Buenas.

Community Journalism Workshop, offered by Michelle Estrada with the sponsorship of the journal Esencia, Revista Cultural Peñolana, which is, in turn, directed by Gerry Martínez and headquartered in Peñuelas, Puerto Rico.

This wide array of activities is vital and encompasses a series of talents and efforts exemplifying educommunicative practices. Research has defined educommunication as a field that teaches anyone, regardless of age, how to use digital and communication media to share stories, present arguments, communicate messages, or rescue the future, the collective memory, and social causes. 

Without a doubt, educating, cultivating social organization, and communicating are key actions to counter a narrative that claims social defeat in a country whose population is aging. Because of this, media literacy could help others acquire the knowledge to be able to differentiate between accurate information, misinformation, hate speech, indoctrination, and other agendas that attempt to divide the people. Education is, therefore, fundamental to stop the aging of the collective psyche.

Maldonado Gómez de la Torre et al. (2024) have suggested a connection between community communication and educommunication, illustrating how knowledge and skills can be acquired through social organization, the proper use of social media, the sound management of information, and the correct identification of misinformation. The activities taking place in rescued schools pose scenarios of intergenerational social organization that would allow for the proposal and encouragement of legitimate petitions and claims to restore a vibrant population on our island. There is space for everyone in Puerto Rico.

References

Estudios Técnicos, Inc. & AARP-Puerto Rico. (2022). Estudio sobre la Brecha Digital y el Acceso a la Banda Ancha de la población de 55 años o más en Puerto Rico. https://eyboricua.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/PRESENTACION-FINAL-RESUMEN-ESTUDIO-23-DE-ENERO-2023.pdf

Maddalena, S. (2025). Digital 2025. We Are Social USA. https://wearesocial.com/us/blog/2025/02/digital-2025/

Maldonado Gómez de la Torre, A. E., León Castro, E., Tobar Tovar, C. A., & Hoyos Hernández, P. A. (2024). Problematizaciones comunicacionales en salud, educomunicación, ciudadanía y cultura: Inspiraciones, renovaciones y actualizaciones críticas contemporáneas. Centro Internacional de Estudios Superiores de Comunicación para América Latina. https://doi.org/10.16921/ciespal.65

Rivera Rivera, I. M. (2025). Las políticas de reorganización, consolidación y cierre de escuelas públicas en Puerto Rico durante el periodo 2013-2020: Implicaciones para el trabajo social escolar. https://repositorio.upr.edu/handle/11721/4268

Serrano Abreu, M. B., Rivera Bonilla, I., Colón Martínez, A., & López Rosa, M. (2025). Rescatar el futuro: Memoria, presencia y re-ocupación de escuelas cerradas: Informe de hallazgos basado en el junte de líderes comunitarios, gestores y visionarios que rescatan escuelas cerradas celebrado el 15 de marzo de 2025 en la Universidad de Puerto Rico en Humacao.

The author has published a book and various reviewed scientific articles. She is currently finishing her doctoral thesis in communications, virtual communities, the political economy of communications, cultural consumption, and the socio-semiotics of mediatization. 

Translated by Valeria González-Calero (calerotranslations@gmail.com)