STEAM+E

LEAP STEAM + E (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts And Mathematics Plus Entrepreneurship) Puerto Rico LEAP School Resiliency Center

To foster social change and economic impact in Puerto Rico, by creating, for the first time, an integrated, feasible pipeline school to promote education, a pathway to college, industry-driven workforce development, and resiliency in low and medium income communities, with the capacity to provide holistic results and solutions to the entire region.

The project — LEAP STEAM + E (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics plus Entrepreneurship) Puerto Rico LEAP School Resiliency Center is the result of a joint effort and partnerships between non-profit organizations (LEAP Social Enterprise, Inc., Centro para Puerto Rico), academia (University of Puerto Rico), the public sector (Puerto Rico Public and Private Partnership Authority (P3), Central Recovery and Reconstruction Office of Puerto Rico (Core3), Puerto Rico Industrial Development Corporation (PRIDCO), Puerto Rico Department of Education (DOE), and the private sector (Holtec International, Advance Solar Products/ EOS Battery Manufacturer).

The project is consistent with the Government of Puerto Rico’s Plan para Desarrollo Integrado (“Plan”), which highlights Education as a vital element and critical component of a comprehensive economic development strategy. It fosters key initiatives such as bilingual and educational methods based on STEAM + E: Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics integrated with Entrepreneurship, the creation of jobs, and the promotion of Puerto Rico’s socio-economic development and competitiveness. The Plan further states that the establishment of Public-Private Partnerships shall promote the transfer of knowledge to the workforce and shall collaborate with local higher education institutions in the evaluation, oversight, and execution of projects.

The project will also promote the efforts under the Innovation Clusters initiative to promote a workforce development strategy that will create a pipeline for employment in coordination with the private sector found within or nearby the location of the school.