Betsy DeVos assesses school recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is visiting Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Wednesday to assess hurricane recovery and rebuilding efforts and talk to local officials about their plans to reopen schools or find other ways to resume learning for students.

During her first stop, in Puerto Rico, DeVos was expected to meet with Gov. Ricardo Rosselló and Julia Keleher – the island's education secretary – as well as other key officials, including higher education leaders.

Late last week, Keleher indicated she expected 80 percent of the island’s schools would be back up and running this week. In total, 44 schools suffered severe enough damage that they will not reopen.

Meanwhile, more than 6,000 students have left the island to enroll in schools on the mainland U.S., including nearly 5,000 students who have enrolled in schools in Florida.

On Wednesday afternoon, Keleher tweeted photos of DeVos' visit and thanked her for allocating $2 million in funding to improve Puerto Rican schools. The source of the funding was unclear, and Education Department officials did not reply to a request for more information.

The secretary is also traveling Wednesday to St. Thomas to meet with U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Kenneth Mapp and representatives from both the Virgin Islands Department of Education and Charlotte Amalie High School on St. Thomas. She’ll also tour the University of the Virgin Islands and meet with David Hall, the university's president.

The American Federation of Teachers, the 1.7 million-member national teachers union, has been involved in recovery efforts in both Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, sending nurses and other health professionals to help, along with more than 100,000 water purifiers and loads of school supplies.

AFT President Randi Weingarten also has been calling on DeVos to help with the relief efforts.

“Virgin Islands public school buildings were in terrible condition before hurricanes Irma and Maria struck, and they’re in even worse shape now,” Weingarten said in a statement Wednesday. “Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ visit must be more than a photo op.”