Customer Stories
With growing demand for personalized learning, Puerto Rico needed a secure, scalable environment capable of supporting AI powered instruction for all learners.
Puerto Rico adopted Microsoft 365 Copilot with modernized Microsoft security and management tools, enabling teachers and administrators to use AI safely and effectively across schools.
Copilot enabled teachers to quickly tailor activities to diverse learner needs, improving differentiation and freeing time for higher impact interactions.
Across the island of Puerto Rico, a spirit of resilience, creativity, and progress fuels a nationwide movement toward transformation. From coastal towns to mountain communities, Puerto Rico is shaping a future defined not just by its heritage, but by innovation that reaches far beyond the island itself.
The island’s public education system serves over 230,000 students and 20,000 educators—one of the largest and most dynamic in the region. Facing legacy technology and an urgent need to modernize, Puerto Rico’s Department of Education chose to lead with vision, turning to Microsoft 365 Copilot as the driving force for change.
Imagine AI not simply as a program, but to personalize learning, simplify administration, and ensure security for every student, teacher, and classroom. The ambition? To expand human potential for decades to come.
Yet even the most powerful vision for learning can stall without the right systems behind it. To move from aspiration to action, Puerto Rico needed technology that could keep pace.
The Puerto Rico Department of Education has seen a significant increase in interest in technology, creating a growing need to hire additional IT staff. Existing systems and security tools could no longer keep pace with growing complexity. The expansion of remote learning heightened risks to student data and compounded device management challenges. “The pandemic highlighted the limitations of our existing systems. We urgently needed a modern, integrated solution to support remote learning and safeguard sensitive information,” explains Marie Ortiz Sánchez, Chief Information Officer, Puerto Rico Department of Education.
Protecting sensitive information—including student records, academic performance metrics, and personal data—demanded robust security and streamlined oversight. The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need for a comprehensive, cloud-based solution to optimize operations, enhance data protection, and facilitate remote education.
“The pandemic highlighted the limitations of our existing systems. We urgently needed a modern, integrated solution to support remote learning and safeguard sensitive information.”
Marie Ortiz Sánchez, Chief Information Officer, Puerto Rico Department of Education
Recognizing that incremental updates were insufficient, the Department undertook a strategic transformation, pursuing advanced, unified tools to address operational, security, and educational priorities.
The Department made the decision to turn to Microsoft 365 Copilot to transform both teaching and administration. Copilot is now used to address the diverse needs of students. For Beverly Morro, Deputy Secretary of Education, Puerto Rico, “Artificial intelligence has arrived to help us better understand the functional diversity of our students. It’s not just technology—it’s inclusion.”
“Artificial intelligence has arrived to help us better understand the functional diversity of our students. It’s not just technology—it’s inclusion.”
Beverly Morro, Deputy Secretary of Education, Puerto Rico
Teachers and administrators use Copilot’s AI capabilities—powered by advanced models—to personalize learning, streamline curriculum planning, and align technology with educational goals. For Carmen Figueroa, a teacher at the Puerto Rico Department of Education, “Copilot helps create simpler activities for those who need them, and more complex exercises for those who finish quickly. It’s real personalization.”
“Copilot helps create simpler activities for those who need them, and more complex exercises for those who finish quickly. It’s real personalization.”
Carmen Figueroa, Teacher, Puerto Rico Department of Education
The strategy ensures all students—including those in special education and with diverse needs—benefit from Copilot’s tools. Educators report increased efficiency and satisfaction, with Copilot standardizing processes and freeing up time for meaningful engagement.
Early results show improvements in standardized test scores, especially in mathematics and science, and a tangible shift in school culture: staff are more open to innovation and proactively seek ways to use AI in learning.* With Microsoft’s security infrastructure in place, the department is confident in protecting student data as it scales the initiative, setting a new standard for AI-driven education across Latin America.
Educators like Carmen Figueroa used Copilot to personalize lesson plans, adapt materials for students with diverse learning needs, and streamline curriculum planning. With Copilot’s AI-powered tools, Carmen personalizes lesson plans, adapts materials for students with diverse learning needs, and streamlines curriculum planning.
Copilot enables teachers to quickly generate both basic and advanced exercises, tailoring instruction for neurodivergent and visual learners. Tamara Roman Serrano, an elementary teacher in the district of Bayamón, says Copilot helps her personalize learning and get time back: “Now I can create tasks specifically tailored to my students in less time and personalize them.” It also accelerates the review and synthesis of individual education plans—especially for special education students—ensuring every child receives a customized plan of care.
At the heart of Puerto Rico’s education transformation is a partnership grounded in timing, trust, and a shared belief in what teachers can achieve with the right support. To make that change meaningful, the Department worked hand in hand with Newtech and Truenorth. Newtech designed and delivered trainings built around teachers’ actual needs, using scenarios and examples pulled directly from Puerto Rico’s classrooms.
“It has been a true privilege to support this group of outstanding educators, deeply committed to learning and continuous improvement. Seeing them embrace Copilot, explore new ways of teaching, and step forward to transform their practice is truly inspiring. As a facilitator, my greatest satisfaction is being the channel that enables them to make the most of these tools and amplify their impact on students. The real change is driven by them through their passion and dedication," enthuses Gabriel Gordon, Digital Workplace Lead, Newtech Group.
Truenorth ensured the entire effort stayed coordinated, guiding project management and offering dependable service desk assistance so teachers always had somewhere to turn. As William Roman, Partner, Truenorth Corp, described it, “By leveraging Copilot’s AI capabilities, we are driving a profound transformation in both academic performance and administrative efficiency within the Department of Education.”
This effort has translated into real behavior change: adoption and usage of Copilot has grown and stabilized as part of daily practice. The Viva Engage Copilot community powered by Newtech has further accelerated momentum, with more than 9,700 teachers actively participating and sharing experiences.
Together, the partners created structured training pathways—from hands on workshops to classroom ready guidance—that helped educators understand how AI could enhance instruction, not replace it. They helped modernize workflows, simplify device management practices, and introduce responsible AI concepts so teachers felt confident and supported.
With the right tools, the right partners, and the right support for teachers and administrators, Puerto Rico is shaping a future where every learner can thrive.
* Findings are drawn from an internal survey (n=118).
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