An El Paso man was sentenced to nearly 200 years in prison for sexually abusing two young girls An El Paso jury sentenced Juan Montellano to 99 years in prison on each of two counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14 years of age Montellano was also sentenced to 20 years in prison on four related counts of indecency with a child involving sexual contact He was fined $10,000 on each of the six offenses Montellano and the victims were not strangers but the El Paso Times is not publishing details about the relationship to avoid identifying the victims The jury reached the guilty verdicts and sentencing Thursday Judge Marcos Lizarraga of the 168th District Court ordered the sentences to be served consecutively meaning Montellano will serve 198 years in prison The sentences on the indecency with a child charges will be served concurrently with one of the continuous sexual abuse charges "I want to emphasize that this is the largest sentence that we have gotten in the past two years during my administration," Hicks said "I'm extremely proud of the extremely hard work that went into this case I want to emphasize if you victimize children in this community You will spend the rest of your life in prison." More: El Paso man receives 170 years in prison for continuous sex abuse of children since 2016 A jury acquitted Montellano on one count of indecency with a child involving sexual contact Assistant district attorneys Eric Willard and Jonathan Amber prosecuted the case The girls testimony was key evidence presented at trial A child abuse expert also testified about how children come forward and process the sexual abuse they suffered "You have to understand when a child is first victimized it's very difficult for that child to give details on what has happened to them to even understand what has happened to them," Hicks said "So when they give their first initial outcry and they first start talking about what has happened to them very difficult for a child to talk in any kind of detail about what has happened." Montellano's 198-year sentence is the second major victory against child sexual abusers in the past two months for Texas' 34th Judicial District Willard and Amber were prosecutors in the Edward Alvarado case. He was sentenced to 170 years in September Alvarado was sentenced to 75 years on one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14 years old; 50 years on a second count of continuous sexual abuse of child under 14 years old; and 45 years on a third count of continuous sexual abuse of child under 14 years old More: Family files lawsuit in vicious attack that killed inmate at El Paso County Jail Annex who also was the presiding judge in Alvarado's trial ordered the sentences to be served consecutively "These cases are messages from the judiciary," Hicks said "We thank Judge Lizarraga for doing the just thing and stacking the sentences and we thank the juries for doing the right thing and sending the right message that sexual abuse of our children will not be tolerated." Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT Around Cornell News directly from Cornell's colleges and centers Marisol Valverde Montellano is a doctoral candidate in ecology and evolutionary biology whose summer research is focused on freshwater soundscapes and species community structure and dynamics with a focus on fishes primarily through work at the Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve in the Brazilian Amazon Ecology and evolutionary biology doctoral candidate Marisol Valverde Montellano conducts research in the Brazilian Amazon Describe the location of your field research My research takes place at the Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve in the Brazilian Amazon.  My research focuses on freshwater soundscapes (the biological and anthropogenic sounds from an area) and species community structure and dynamics.  I focus on fishes which are the vertebrate group with the highest diversity of sound-producing mechanisms I am interested in understanding if freshwater soundscapes can reflect species community composition and how soundscapes change over the seasons What do you hope will be the impact of this work I hope that in the same way we use acoustic monitoring for birds and anurans particularly in highly-diverse and remote regions such as the Amazon River Basin where thousands of people rely on fisheries Marisol Valverde Montellano and her advisor at the Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve in the Brazilian Amazon How will field research advance your understanding of your research in a way that classes or theory does not as currently there are very few acoustic recordings of tropical freshwaters spending so much time in the field has been really important to gain a better understanding of Amazonian lakes What has surprised you about your experience But perhaps a "funny" one: the diversity of ways in which my equipment (hydrophones which are aquatic microphones) can be targeted by Amazonian organisms: eaten by caymans How did Cornell programs and/or faculty mentors help connect you with the opportunity to carry out this research at the Mamirauá Institute for Sustainable Development Fleischmann invited us to visit the Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve.  What would you say to students considering applying to Cornell for grad school Cornell is a wonderful place to pursue a degree full of opportunities and amazing and collaborative people.  Get Cornell news delivered right to your inbox Update: Watch the El Paso District Attorney talk about the sentencing and conviction live below: Texas (KVIA) -- An El Paso jury convicted Juan Montellano on multiple child sex abuse charges this week Court records show that the jury convicted Montellano on two counts of sex abuse of a child under 14 and four counts of indecency with a child (sexual contact) The jury acquitted Montellano of one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child Montellano pleaded not guilty in the 168th District Court to all charges on October 31 A spokesperson for the El Paso District Attorney's Office explained that Montellano was sentenced to 200 years in prison "This is the biggest victory that the office has had under the Hicks administration in the past two years and we are honored to have brought justice to the victims," the spokesperson explained Tyaun Marshburn is a multimedia journalist KVIA ABC 7 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Community Guidelines | KVIA-TV FCC Public File | FCC Applications | Do Not Sell My Personal Information A 42-year-old Pasadena man was arrested Wednesday for setting a house on fire in the 700 block of East Orange Grove Boulevard displacing six residents and killing a cat according to the Pasadena Police Department Luis Montellano was taken into custody a short distance from the scene after witnesses identified him as a suspect seen fleeing the area according to Pasadena Police Lieutenant Matt Campeau Pasadena police and fire departments responded to the blaze at approximately 12:08 p.m and found the house fully engulfed in flames upon arrival one cat was found deceased at the scene as a result of the fire The Pasadena Humane Society responded due to pets being present in the home The Red Cross is assisting the six displaced residents with temporary housing arrangements who apparently is unrelated to the victims Pasadena arson investigators were called to the location to conduct a further investigation into the incident Los Angeles County booking records show Montellano is being held at the downtown Los Angeles Inmate Reception Center on a $250,000 bond Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to call the Pasadena Police at (626) 744-4241 or report information anonymously by contacting “Crime Stoppers” at (800) 222-TIPS (8477) via your smartphone by downloading the “P3 Tips” Mobile App on Google Play or the Apple App Store, or by using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org    More » The ‘Humming-Byrd’ House: A Mid-Century Storybook Ranch Surrounded by Nature Pasadena Now has been published daily since April 2004 and is among the very oldest continuously operated community news websites in the U.S Pasadena Now strives to publish a full spectrum of news and information articles in service to the entire community The publication will remain free to readers and will not erect paywalls Copyright © 2025. Pasadena Now | Terms of - Service | Privacy Policy | CA Notice of Collection RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds offer another way to get Pasadena Now content Subscribe to our feeds to get the latest headlines summaries and links back to full articles – formatted for your favorite feed reader and updated throughout the day Madison Montellano knows what it means to take the road less traveled embracing each twist and turn through her academic adventure Madison Montellano graduates May 2024 with a major in environmental and a minor political science With the help of her advisors Madison Montellano realized the path to finding her purpose doesn’t need to be linear Montellano first focused on biology but then the science of climate change led her to switch paths Montellano will graduate with a major in earth and environmental science and a minor in political science.  “I always had the passion for these two fields but didn't know I could combine them until I had the opportunity to at UNLV.” Her advisors at the College of Sciences helped Montellano find her true direction “I feel like many students entering college assume that there is one path to stick to and if you deviate from this path that you’re failing,” she says “They were the ones who helped assure me I was on the right path and without them I think I would've felt a lot more lost.”   With the help of UNLV's Office of International Programs building connections between environmental and political science She started to see how addressing climate issues required a global solution.  "I understood that the issues I want to tackle in my career are not limited to one state or one country," Montellano reflects on her trip abroad “I also like to emphasize the importance of the guidance and education received from each of these community's local experts but to learn traditional sustainable practices — along with their cultural significance — that can be implemented around the world.”  Montellano plans to take a gap year as a  volunteer abroad before starting her master’s degree “I will be backpacking and exploring different parts of Southeast Asia and then I hope to make my way to a few parts of Europe learning and immersing myself in different cultural experiences and trying to give back to any place I visit!" Her time at UNLV laid the groundwork for navigating complex processes, thanks to assistance from the International Studies program Their guidance helped her with that first study abroad trip to Australia inspiring a lifelong love of travel and learning to make a difference across the world I would love to study and work in multiple places around the world to learn how to implement and expand different sustainable development techniques Fourth-year medical students reflect on their medical school journey one week before commencement Sky Denson says UNLV's real estate program helped launch his career — before he even graduated a longtime UNLV faculty member and administrator most recently served as the university's officer in charge; appointment runs through April 2028.  Texas [KFOX14] — A former teacher of the Socorro Independent School District is scheduled to appear in court on Monday The plea hearing is scheduled to begin at 1:15 p.m at the 348th District Court at the El Paso County Courthouse Rachel Montellano is facing felony charges for having sexual intercourse with a student Montellano was a teacher at El Dorado High School before she resigned in August of 2020 Montellano’s court case began on January 27 according to the El Paso County Court case docket A warrant for her arrest was issued on February 16 Montellano was scheduled to have a jury trial but it has been reset a total of four times Montellano was held on a $50,000 bond and booked into the El Paso County Courthouse RELATED:Teacher in El Paso County accused of having improper relationship with student Sign up to receive the topmost interesting stories from in and around our community once a day to your inbox LAS CRUCES - A Las Cruces woman with previous child abuse convictions was arrested Monday afternoon and charged with three new counts of felony child abuse.  is also charged with a probation violation The latest charges stem from safe house interviews with Montellano's children — a 3-year-old boy and a 5-year-old girl — who each told interviewers about multiple instances of abuse The girl said she doesn't feel safe with her mom and was quoted in court documents as saying The children were first taken to a safe house after a disturbing incident at a local day care Stay informed. Sign up for a subscription to the Sun-News investigators with the Las Cruces Police Criminal Investigations unit were called to Kids Kountry Daycare Center after a daycare worker found bruises on the boy's neck Day care staff asked the boy what happened and he said his "mommy" had hurt him while the two watched TV The boy grabbed his neck and made choking sounds while disclosing how he was hurt a witness noticed bruising on the girl's leg The girl allegedly said "Mommy bit me because I couldn't find my shoes," when asked by the witness about the bruising, court documents state The children were again taken for safe house interviews on Oct the boy and the girl each described other incidents of possible abuse such as being pushed into a vehicle and being spanked with a belt During an interview after waiving her Miranda rights Montellano allegedly admitted to the police that she often yells and curses at her children and tells them that she hates them and wants them to get out of her house to go live with their father.  she said she didn't know how the boy ended up with the bruises on his neck She did admit to being frustrated because her daughter couldn't find her shoes but said it was her son who bit his sister Community: Saundra Gonzales honors children who died from abuse Montellano initially told investigators that she didn't own a belt as described by her daughter and that she used a shoelace to spank her kids.  When investigators asked her if she could walk them through her house to prove that she doesn't have a belt like that Montellano admitted to spanking them with the belt about a month ago Montellano told investigators that she had a medical marijuana card A voluntary drug test revealed her son had marijuana in his system Crime: Las Cruces mother of three sentenced to probation in third child abuse case Montellano pleaded guilty to two counts of child abuse and one count of aggravated driving while intoxicated. As part of her sentence she was ordered to complete anger management counseling and community services.  Court documents from February 2016 state that Montellano was driving drunk with her daughter in the car and crashed into another vehicle on Interstate 10 Montellano fled from the scene.  Police later pulled her over in the area of Spruce Avenue and Evelyn Street Court documents state that that her then 16-month old daughter was in a car seat in the back of the vehicle Montellano allegedly told officers that she did drink alcohol while in the car but after the crash. She failed field sobriety tests and registered a .17 blood-alcohol level Bethany Freudenthal can be reached at bfreudenthal@lcsun-news.com, 575-541-5449 or @bethanyfreuden1 on Twitter.  Crime: Mescalero man accused of sex abuse crimes going back 32 years SAN ANTONIO - A 19-year-old has been arrested after allegedly robbing a man at gunpoint after a dice game was arrested on Saturday and charged with aggravated robbery Court records allege that Montellano arrived at the victim's home while the victim and his nephews were playing a dice game with money Montellano knew one of the victim's nephews and was allowed into the home Both the victim and his nephews knew that Montellano was armed Authorities say that the victim took out a stack of cash from a small safe and left it on the table during the game Police say that after the game ended and the nephews had left the victim and Montellano were the only people at the home While having a conversation about a car in the driveway Montellano allegedly pulled his gun on the victim taking both the money and the mini-safe and fleeing the home Montellano then allegedly posted with the stolen money and gun on Instagram After obtaining a warrant to search the Instagram account direct messages with other accounts were discovered that allegedly discussed the incident An El Dorado High School band teacher was arrested by Socorro school district police on a charge of suspicion of having an "improper relationship" with a student Carl Andre Ortega of El Paso was arrested Friday by Socorro Independent School District Police Department officers on suspicion of improper relationship between an educator and student It's unclear the age or grade of the student involved in the case Socorro Independent School District's website lists Ortega as a head band teacher at El Dorado High School Public records do not list an attorney for Ortega More: Socorro ISD middle school teacher arrested on child porn charge District officials declined to discuss the arrest and Ortega's current employment status with the district "This request is regarding an ongoing investigation," district spokeswoman Christina Flores-Jones said in an email "We are unable to release any information at this time." Ortega was booked into the El Paso County Jail on a $100,000 bond Court documents filed in the case were not immediately available Ortega is the second El Dorado High School teacher to be arrested in recent years Rachel Montellano, a teacher at the high school, was arrested Feb 2022 on suspicion of improper relationship between an educator and student The arrest was the result of an investigation into a relationship with a student in March 2019 Montellano resigned from the district in August 2020 Montellano of Horizon City was indicted on six counts of improper relationship between an educator and student She pleaded not guilty on five of the counts and those charges were dismissed She pleaded "nolo contendere" in July 2023 to one count of improper relationship between an educator and student Nolo contendere is when a defendant accepts a conviction as though a guilty plea had been entered but does not admit guilt She was sentenced to four years of probation and 200 hours of community service Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT. Wind gusts of 30+ mph along with afternoon and evening blowing dust, could reduce visibility. Weather MapsRadarTeacher in El Paso County accused of having improper relationship with student by Erika Esquivel Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — A teacher in El Paso County was arrested and accused of having an improper relationship with a student Deputies with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office arrested 58-year-old Rachel Montellano on Thursday at the 13000 block of Paseo De Vida The Socorro Independent School District confirmed that Montellano was an employee of the district and that she resigned from SISD in August 2020 Montellano and an El Dorado High School student had sexual intercourse Montellano was booked into the El Paso County Detention Center where she is being held under a $50,000 bond RECOMMENDED:SWAT team responding to armed barricaded subject in Northeast El Paso Sign up to receive the topmost interesting stories from in and around our community once a day to your inbox This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page 2023 at 1:56 pm CT.css-79elbk{position:relative;}Anthony Rios Montellano was found shot in the head last week and died at a local hospital in an incident that police continue to investigate (Photo courtesy of GoFundMe)CARPENTERSVILLE IL — The family of a 17-year-old boy who was shot and killed last week is now trying to raise money for his funeral as police continue to investigate the incident that claimed his life A GoFundMe effort organized by a Lake In The Hills resident identified the shooting victim as Anthony Rios Montellano who is one of six children of Jazmin Rios Montellano and her husband Police said last week that the teen was found shot in the head in the street on Carpentersville’s east side on Oct Police said that the teen was one of three people shot while they were sitting in a vehicle parked on Robin Road on Wednesday night before the car was moved and the boy’s body was found on Birch Street which has raised more than $4,300 of a $10,000 goal as of Monday kind boy who always helped out and loved to make others laugh.” and so much more,” the fundraising page said Money raised through the effort will help the local family cover the expenses of the teen’s funeral “Anthony's family was not prepared for the high cost of a funeral service,” the GoFundMe page said “We want to give Anthony the memorial he deserves to honor his memory and say our last goodbyes.” no suspects were in custody in connection with the shooting which also injured two other people Police have not offered any further details about the incident Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. woman arrested after being linked to six robberies in San Antonio area police sayOfficers arrested the pair during a traffic stopCody King SAN ANTONIO – A suspected serial robber and a getaway driver were arrested after they were caught red-handed shortly after one of the crimes are accused of being involved in six robberies in the San Antonio area over the past few weeks where the pair were expected to target their next robbery As police began surveillance at the location Calderon arrived wearing a mask and was armed with a firearm Calderon committed the robbery before getting inside of a getaway vehicle driven by Montellano officers found the pair and pulled them over for a traffic stop Calderon and Montellano’s cases were not listed in the Bexar County court records We’ll bring more updates as they become available Copyright 2023 by KSAT - All rights reserved Email Newsletters KSAT RSS Feeds Contests and Rules Contact Us KSAT Internships Careers at KSAT Closed Captioning / Audio Description Public File Current EEO Report Terms of Use Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Info FCC Applications Copyright © 2025 KSAT.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group “I’m thrilled that Paul accepted this appointment,” said Mary Anne Koda-Kimble “It’s one of a senior science advisor to me and my leadership group “Paul has a record of international accomplishment the ability to explain science clearly and passionately and the ability to see the big picture…all criteria for the job,” she added The associate dean of research is one of the pharmacy school dean’s key advisors on campus national and international science opportunities issues and trends The position sits on the dean’s Leadership Group along with the school’s three departments chairs the associate dean and the associate deans for communications and planning Ortiz de Montellano is recognized for his extensive work on the generation and consequences of biological free radicals and has developed a growing presence in the area of tuberculosis drug resistance mechanisms and the design of anti-tuberculosis agents He is also widely regarded as a leader in research on the cytochromes P450 and Biochemistry,” is recognized as the seminal text in this field Ortiz de Montellano’s work on cytochrome P450 mechanism and inhibition led in 1994 to his being awarded the B.B Brodie Award in Drug Metabolism of the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and in 2007 the Research Achievement Award of the International Society for Zenobiotics the highest national and international awards “This is an opportunity for me to bring the experience I’ve had here with 20th century science to the 21st century science being developed in the school – science that is invigorated by our young faculty members,” said Ortiz de Montellano who has been part of the UCSF faculty since 1971.  “And it’s an opportunity working with the dean and the leadership group to help guide the school’s bright future as we move forward Visit the Media Center Subscribe to UCSF News © 2025 The Regents of The University of California A 58-year-old woman was arrested Thursday on a charge of improper relationship between an educator and a student The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Warrant & Fugitive Apprehension Unit and deputies assigned to Peter J Herrera Patrol Station were conducting an investigation on a wanted subject in the 13000 block of Paseo De Vida in El Paso County Rachel Montellano was sought on the charge the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release deputies made contact with a woman resembling Montellano She then was positively identified as Montellano and was taken into custody without incident Montellano was an employee of Socorro Independent School District She resigned from the district in August 2020 district spokesperson Daniel Escobar said Friday afternoon She was booked into the El Paso County Jail in Downtown on Thursday on a bond of $50,000 More: Crime of the week: Man exposes himself to woman in Central El Paso Target store More: Crime of the week: Suspect pulls switchblade on Target employees while shoplifting Volume 4 - 2023 | https://doi.org/10.3389/frsus.2023.1197659 This article is part of the Research TopicEducation Challenges for Circular EconomyView all 5 articles The circular economy (CE) is gaining global relevance across countries and institutions as a tool to solve some of the most pressing global challenges derived from linear production and consumption systems transitioning to a CE requires significant changes in how businesses and supply chains operate These changes require that future professionals acquire knowledge and skills on the principles of CE research on existing higher education programs signals a need for educational resources to develop these skills and knowledge in real-world settings This paper outlines a new eight-step methodology to introduce students to the principles of CE through the exploratory redesign of a real-world product and value chain in a project-centered learning environment This methodology was developed in four iterations and was used to teach 251 students from the BSc Business Engineering at Maastricht University during the academic years 2020–2022 The findings indicate that this method supports students' understanding of complexity and the importance of systemic change across the entire value chain The methodology provided in this paper supports and encourages educational bodies to implement Education for CE in their curricula and further strengthens the complementary fields of Education for Environmental Sustainability and Education for Sustainable Development professionals and businesses can make use of this tested methodology for exploratory product redesign toward sustainable circularity transitions ECE also considers the role of nature and society but incorporates them into a systems perspective centered on the role of businesses and ecosystems as change makers for sustainable development which can help students develop critical thinking skills and design innovative solutions to complex sustainability challenges The PBL philosophy of UM has four pillars: constructive, collaborative, contextual, and self-directed learning (CCCS) (Dolmans et al., 2005) PCL and the CCCS values were used to guide the development of this methodology The methodology centers around a challenge that students need to solve for a company students must engage actively and use their own knowledge and skills across academic fields to solve it (constructive learning) and the methodology requires them to use collective brainstorming and create value chain scenarios to encourage them to work collaboratively instead of just separating tasks (collaborative learning) By using specific cases but creating different solutions across the value chain students must look at the challenge from different perspectives (contextual learning) by letting the team plan and monitor their learning progress and evaluating both the process and product the methodology encourages self-directed learning The objective of this paper is to present an ECE methodology developed for teaching CE in higher education at UM The method applies specific CE principles in a real-world case study and an eight-step approach called The Circular Pathway (TCP) TCP provides a practical and effective way to support ECE This method offers students a well-defined set of skills to apply in their future careers The approach guides students through the iterative process of product and process redesign while remaining accessible to those without prior expertise in sustainability This paper provides the principles and details of the developed ECE methodology so that other educational institutions can use it for the development of their own CE education This methodology is the outcome of 3 years of iterative development with students from the BSc Business Engineering at UM from 2020 to 2022 The paper is structured as follows: the methods section discusses the process of development and improvement of the methodology with a focus on the course design of the method The results section describes each step of the methodology The discussion section elaborates on the outcomes of using the TCP and points toward its strengths and challenges identified by the students the conclusion section draws upon the experiences of testing this methodology to elaborate on its relevance this course was given within the “Project period” block of the BSc Business Engineering: a 4-week period where students follow only one course and ST run across the foundation of the methodology The main learning objective of this course was to apply the analysis and design principles of the CE to the current value chain of a specific product the course had four intended learning outcomes for the students: (1) demonstrate the ability to plan and perform a group-led scientific research project in the Circular Economy field; (2) develop teamwork and communication skills; (3) critically reflect on research work quality and scientific ethics; and (4) effectively communicate science both in writing and orally Summary of groups and projects that have used the methodology “Version 1” (V1) was delivered to master's students in the program of Biobased Materials during the 2019–2020 academic year as a pilot The results from this pilot revealed important gaps that limited the student's ability to measure the linearity or circularity of their project The first iteration (V2) strengthened these gaps and the overall structure of the method V2 was delivered to bachelor students from BSc Business Engineering during the academic year 2020–2021 The increase in overall group size required better standardization of the methodology and clearer expectations from the students The outcome of V2 was iterated once more (V3) for the academic year 2021–2022 incorporating improvements on the scoring matrixes and step definitions The main changes for this version are the use of visual matrixes and the integration of the methodology within the “CIRCULAR” acronym It is important to note that the number size and education level of the groups were not controlled by the research group but organized by the university's office of student affairs We used two forms of feedback to improve each version: informal conversations with each team during the mentoring sessions throughout the project period (twice per week) written feedback on the “Discussion” and “Conclusions” sections of each team's report and staff feedback after the completion of each version of the course This section describes the results from a format and content perspective The “course design” sub-section elaborates on the format and interactions with and among students as well as the key activities expected from them at each step of the course The “methodology” sub-section describes the TCP methodology in detail throughout the CIRCULAR acronym Details on each step of TCP are provided in the results section Distribution of TCP methodology and milestones across a 4-week project period Description of the three phases and eight steps of the circular pathway the students zoom inside the product to see its components They then zoom out to consider the product's retail and final destination(s) at the end of life Students are then requested to map the product's value chain from extraction to end-of-life A value chain map must have information on five main areas: (1) The product composition is the exploded view of a product with details on its components assembly elements (such as glues and screws) (2) The supply chain description identifies the processes that enable the product's manufacturing from the extraction of raw materials to the production and assembly of components and products (3) The use chain considers the processes happening after the product is manufactured and before its end of life This includes the purchasing and business model strategies (4) The retrieval chain considers the processes after the use phase of a product such as breaking down the product into different components for refurbishment and remanufacturing and the separation and sorting of materials and materials when no more value is extracted from them (5) The logistics aspect of a value chain includes the strategies used to move products and materials across the chains mentioned above considering different geographies and scales as well as considerations specific to a product such as packaging and specialized transport During this step, students reflect on the key linearity challenges within the value chain map they created. Using a scoring matrix, they assess the current value chain in eight categories as proposed by the literature (Garcia-Saravia Ortiz-de-Montellano and van der Meer, 2022), and through literature and consensus, the group provides a circularity score from 0 to 10 for each stage. The scoring matrix is provided as Supplementary material The aspects of the value chain with the lowest score are considered the project's “hotspots” or “bottlenecks” and will be addressed in the following steps which can be used by the tutor to support the students or by the teams themselves The use of a matrix that combines system levels with circularity strategies aims to promote creative thinking and force the search for ideas beyond the obvious or initial ones Figure 1. The circular matrix template and trigger questions (based on Garcia-Saravia Ortiz-de-Montellano and van der Meer, 2022) The five levels are built concentrically to allow students to zoom in and out of the circularity challenge (1) The material level is the smallest unit of analysis and includes the materials of a product Changes at the material level can consider their sourcing (2) The component level uses the materials to build pieces that will conform to the final product These pieces might be made suitable for refurbishment or remanufacturing The component level also considers the effects of dematerialization (3) The product level is made of different components and acts as the centerpiece connecting producers to consumers and end-of-life Changes at a product level might include increasing or decreasing the use time and overall design to increase circularity and circular consumer behavior (4) The business level considers the strategies and mechanisms by which the product reaches the consumer's hands It includes elements of the consumer experience such as shifting product ownership for product-as-a-service and it considers the relationships beyond the business model toward suppliers It also considers improvements in how the system's set-up might be made more circular as a whole at an industrial park or city level This step supports the processing and organization of the ideas generated during the exploratory phase. The students must build three scenarios as new value chains by grouping the solutions they have found. The goal is to sketch three new value chains by chaining several ideas into one value chain. An example of this diagram is shown in Figure 2 This step places particular emphasis on the systemic nature of product redesign by encouraging students to consider how any solution would affect and be affected by processes occurring during extraction Representation of three visions created by coupling different alternatives into one value chain students use the same scoring matrix as in step 3 (Recognize) to evaluate their alternatives in terms of circularity Using these results and through collaborative discussions students iterate two solutions to increase their circularity score by looking again at their inventory of ideas and the lowest scores from the score matrix This step reinforces the concept of iteration and continuous improvement of ideas a fundamental activity in product redesign using systems thinking They are now asked to take a step back and reflect on how each solution contributes (or not) to the key pressing challenges of the company and the global goals and challenges and the Social Ceiling through critical thinking and discussion with peers The following section discusses the strengths and limitations of this methodology in the domains of CE, LCT, ST, and soft-skills development. The discussion is based on the anecdotal evidence collected from the two courses given in the 2020–2021 and 2021–2022 academic years. Illustrative samples are included throughout the discussion, and the total of collected evidence is supplied in Annex 4 we argue that this methodology is a valuable tool for the development of LCT and skills for identifying and prioritizing the challenges that different value chains have when transitioning to a circular economy We have learned that to achieve a sustainable product one must not only think in the recycling part of the chain rather than each different step of the circular product the company had to find a way to tie the different aspects of the chain in order to have a flowing circular product As signaled by Clark et al. (2009) this capacity of thinking in systems and across the value chain is an essential skill to redesign products beyond “superficial sustainability' to meet consumers” needs in a more holistic the students' feedback indicates that this methodology is a helpful tool to move deeper from the general challenges of circularity to the wicked issues in complex systems and ST Two examples of this increased awareness are provided below: Finding a circular alternative to a problem has been more complex and challenging than only replacing one product by another one Redesigning a value chain is a whole organization with many aspects to think about that can affect each other The whole process needs to be seen as a holistic view We also saw that a problem does not always have one ideal solution something is rarely one hundred percent advantageous or disadvantageous a potential solution offers counterparts too these counterparts have to be weighed against their benefits by the help of a score matrix It is important to mention that the circular economy is a complex system that is closely related to the socioeconomic context and that focuses on the value of sustainability and its impact on the environment and society This contribution is closely connected to the principles of EES and ESD as well Specific to the course design and the use of PCL, research has argued that working in teams on a project with an outsider company or client and adequate educational support can strengthen the students' individual and collaborative learning capacities and build communication, collaboration, and project-management skills (Wiek et al., 2014) Evidence from the student's reports signals that the course allowed them to practice several soft skills The project not only cultivated problem-solving skills but also contributed to improvements in individual and teamwork together with brainstorming and communication skills The project was a great source of experience and knowledge for the research team They learned what a value chain and circularity are how research can be conducted efficiently and how to work as a team to get through the project in an effective and precise way Additional to the students' feedback the companies involved in these projects have demonstrated their interest in collaborating with students and universities on projects related to sustainability and CE Based on our experiences and discussions with the companies their participation allows them to broaden their perspectives through the insights provided by an “outsider team.” The methodology offers them an exploratory lens to envision the potential benefits of adopting CE practices within their specific business niche Even if the immediate applicability may not be evident this serves as an initial screening of alternative approaches several companies have expressed their interest in collaborating with students with the outlook of providing them with internships and getting in contact with young professionals interested in the field Particularly noteworthy is the interest and commitment that start-ups have shown despite the significant time investment required We have identified three types of challenges in our ECE methodology: (1) Issues related to the relationship with the companies that supply the case studies (2) issues related to the short period given to complete the challenge and (3) issues related to the breadth and depth of knowledge required to complete the assignment The use of real-world business cases has been championed as a powerful learning tool to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills (Kennedy et al., 2001; Baaken et al., 2015). However, the challenge of working with companies seems to be a common issue with PCL (Garousi, 2011; Wiek et al., 2014; Baaken et al., 2015) and according to the student's feedback one of the key blocks in their progress is the relationship with the company the lack of company transparency and data availability limits their access to accurate information and This lack of transparency makes it also significantly harder to understand the magnitude of the issue at hand and the possible impact of circular products like the one proposed During the research the team was faced with a few limitations This was mainly a result of the lack of information provided by the company which prompted many assumptions on various topics If further research on the subject is intended then effective communication with the company is the key to achieving accurate An alternative to solve this challenge would be to use existing business case collections (Cases | Harvard Business Publishing Education, 2023) or use data from the literature to make sure students always have access to the required information This would reduce the dependency on the company and their availability of data but it would also reduce the real-life experience for the students was the short time assigned for the execution of the projects (4 weeks in total) which limited the scope and depth of the results they were able to obtain A possible solution to this would be to shift the course to the 8-week periods of the academic year which would potentially give students more time to settle into the project and its execution although the study load would be comparable in the 8-week period as this period covers two parallel courses no literature has been found to argue that a longer period to execute the project with the same study load would be better or worse than a 4-week full-time period some teams perceived their knowledge gap on CE and the company's industrial field to be too big for the short period given the depth of the student's reports was sufficient and analyses were complete This indicates that perhaps more effort is required to manage the students' perception of the required depth of knowledge The limited time 1 month limits the possible depth in which the topic can be explored and restricts the amount of resources that could be evaluated One major limitation of this report is the time our team had to do thorough research If we would have had more time we could have given better and more exact advice on how to get rid of the waste and the potential alternatives here suggested would not significantly affect the learning outcomes for this course as the methodology still allows them to (1) demonstrate the ability to plan and perform a group-led scientific research project in the Circular Economy field; (2) develop teamwork and communication skills; (3) critically reflect on research work quality Considering the limitation that this methodology was developed specifically for PCL environments one of the methodology's fundamental limitations is the application of results after the design phase this methodology has been applied to a wide array of group sizes Despite the overall positive response from the student groups and companies further work could be directed toward fine-tuning the material for different educational levels and group sizes an important aspect to consider and discuss is the means of application of LCT and ST within the methodology Our results suggest that students were able to incorporate LCT and ST tools into their projects despite having a limited theoretical background in these fields Students were required to define a functional unit and its value chain they needed to identify linear challenges using various CE principles and comprehend ideas in relation to the status quo of their challenge when selecting a scenario and reflecting on the business students relied on the interconnected criteria of LCT This enabled them to present arguments in support of their work and discuss its limitations While this approach has worked for the scope and timeline of the projects other applications might require more extensive background information on these subjects and on frameworks such as Life Cycle Assessment or theories such as the planetary boundaries we have experienced that the methodology presented here effectively teaches the CE principles This allows students to develop a well-defined set of skills and knowledge on CE and guides them through the iterative process of product and process redesign which is in line with the learning goals of the course the TCP methodology is an engaging and practical entry point to CE whose course design and strategies support the development of teamwork as intended by the learning outcomes of the course we contend that developing graduates with the skills to create circular business models and promote circular consumption can facilitate the growth of the CE and the creation of new The CE is gaining global significance as an alternative to offset the negative impacts of the linear economy the transition from a linear to a circular economy requires significant changes in the way businesses design products professionals must be equipped with the knowledge and skills to implement CE principles effectively there is a gap in existing higher education programs on EES and CEE for educational resources to help students develop the skills and knowledge required to implement CE principles in real-world settings This paper outlines a new methodology to introduce students to the principles of CE and ST through hands-on experience and real-world case studies in a project-centered learning environment these approaches provide a holistic perspective that looks at the system beyond individual parts or stages of a process The findings from the application of this method at a bachelor's level indicate that students learn to identify and address complexity We also acknowledge that this method has important limitations due to working directly with companies in a short period and the demanding nature of fast-paced project periods we have confidence in the relevance of this paper and method as a well-defined and tested approach for exploratory circular product redesign We assert that the method is useful to the students' learning journey and professionals who require training in CE for educating others advancing their careers in the field of sustainability and CE developing new products and business models or support other industries and regions regarding circularity transitions This methodology is built in eight steps that follow the CIRCULAR acronym: (1) With the company understand its pressing challenges and develop an initial brief of requirements students identify the product's current value chain (3) Students then use the theory provided on CE and the scoring matrix to recognize the critical problems of linearity regarding value retention and sustainability These first three steps comprise the problem definition phase students create multiple alternatives to the identified problems at different levels and sort them to (5) uncover three value chains that converge multiple solutions students level up their solutions to improve them and turn them into two visions of change These three steps cover the idea exploration phase students analyze their solutions' risks and opportunities and compare them to the original product they reflect on these visions' impact on the business which is the consolidation phase of the process Based on the empirical evidence gathered through the application and iteration of this methodology we contend that its strong focus on systems and life-cycle thinking for CE and application to real-world sustainability business challenges contributes to and complements the existing frameworks of Education for Environmental Sustainability (EES) Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) we argue that fostering graduates equipped with the ability to create circular business models and promote circular consumption can contribute to the growth of a CE and the creation of new incorporating CE principles into higher education programs is crucial to driving the transition to a more sustainable and circular economy The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article's Supplementary material; further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author and AG contributed to the initial design of the methodology and its application CG-S wrote the first draft of the manuscript YM and AG provided feedback and guidance for improvement with a donation from Aramco and the Dutch Province of Limburg and companies for their participation in the courses where this methodology was applied and for their honest and valuable feedback The authors also thank the reviewers for improving the content of this paper through their suggestions The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsus.2023.1197659/full#supplementary-material Education for Environmental Sustainability; ESD Google Scholar Real World Projects with Companies Supporting Competence Development in Higher Education Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar “Problem-based learning: Future challenges for educational practice and research,” in Medical Education 732–741 CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar Google Scholar Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Measuring China's circular economy CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar A systems thinking approach to understanding the challenges of achieving the circular economy CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Barriers to effective circular supply chain management in a developing country context Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Theoretical contribution of industrial ecology to circular economy Saini, D., and Agarwal, J. (2020). “Leadership to Cultivate the Circular Economy,” in IGI Global. Available online at: https://services.igi-global.com/resolvedoi/resolve.aspx?doi=10.4018/978-1-7998-5116-5.ch029 doi: 10.4018/978-1-7998-5116-5.ch029 (accessed January 16 PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar Integrating problem-and project-based learning into sustainability programs A case study on the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University The history and current applications of the circular economy concept Keywords: education for the circular economy (ECE) Citation: Garcia-Saravia Ortiz-de-Montellano C Ghannadzadeh A and van der Meer Y (2023) The CIRCULAR pathway: a new educational methodology for exploratory circular value chain redesign Received: 31 March 2023; Accepted: 17 July 2023; Published: 15 August 2023 Copyright © 2023 Garcia-Saravia Ortiz-de-Montellano, Ghannadzadeh and van der Meer. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited in accordance with accepted academic practice distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms *Correspondence: Yvonne van der Meer, WXZvbm5lLnZhbmRlck1lZXJAbWFhc3RyaWNodHVuaXZlcnNpdHkubmw= Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher. 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish. X Olga Montellano, an informal child care provider, says goodbye to Mateo Casillas, 2, after caring for him for the day. patient and doesn’t flinch when small children shout excitedly in her face her calm demeanor was on display as she watched over her 3-year-old daughter and her next-door neighbor’s 3-year-old son as they frolicked on her front lawn in north Denver’s Elyria-Swansea neighborhood When the ponytailed mother of four heard what sounded like gunshots a street over past a giant reading nook she’d crafted from cardboard Montellano has been taking care of kids in her home for five years ever since her next-door neighbor got a job at a factory and needed someone to watch her older child Montellano added a 2-year-old boy to the mix the son of a friend who’d just landed an office-cleaning job mostly unregulated child care is a lifesaver in Elyria-Swansea Interstate 70 and large industrial plots share space with residential pockets that are home to many poor and working-class families Licensed child care — particularly for children 3 and younger — is hard to come by here the neighborhood has won an unwelcome designation: Child care desert it’s a place where the number of small children far exceeds the number of licensed child care slots But a slate of recent efforts could help Elyria-Swansea shed the label — and hold implications for other communities grappling with the problem include training for informal providers like Montellano efforts to better match home-based child care slots with families and attempts to bring new child care centers to the area The idea is to ease the child care scramble that plagues many working parents in the largely Hispanic neighborhood and help set up young kids for future academic success. Currently, more than half of neighborhood children — many of them English learners — aren’t reading proficiently by the end of third grade the projects represent an ambitious undertaking that could bring much-needed attention to a long-neglected neighborhood But they’re also separate efforts with different leaders missions and geographic reach — all unfolding as locals brace for big changes in the neighborhood On the horizon are a massive expansion of Interstate 70 and a billion-dollar overhaul of the National Western Stock Show complex And as Denver’s breakneck growth continues the neighborhood is showing signs of gentrification To those invested in transforming child care in this Denver neighborhood and similar urban areas across the country all the changes raise an uncomfortable question: Will the families who need help still be around when the work is done “That’s a fear that we all have,” said Nicole Riehl director of programs and development at Denver’s Early Childhood Council one of many partners in an initiative called United Neighborhoods doing work in Elyria-Swansea Nine of Denver’s 78 neighborhoods, including Elyria-Swansea, are classified as child care deserts, according to data from a recent Center for American Progress report Parts of more than a dozen other neighborhoods also earn that designation The report found that half of the people in the 22 states it examined live in a child care desert which it defines as neighborhoods or small towns with either no child care options or so few that there are more than three children for every licensed child care slot Some rely on nearby relatives or neighbors to watch their children drive their kids to child care centers or preschool programs outside the neighborhood fearing child care will eat up their whole paycheck leave the workforce altogether to stay home with their kids a single mother of four who lives in the neighborhood illustrates the extent to which families cobble together care when affordable She works at night so she can be home during the day to handle school and preschool pick-ups and drop-offs for her younger three children she enlists her college-age son to watch his siblings when she waitresses full-time and her oldest son goes to his part-time job she pays a babysitter $200 to stay at her house with the kids Meléndez worries about the toll the arrangement takes on her eldest son “I would like to be able to take care of my kids myself so that he doesn’t have so much pressure,” she said “I know he’s going to have to concentrate more on school.” but it is a reminder that market forces alone don’t ensure an adequate supply of child care in many communities That’s why quality child care needs to be understood as a public good — one that requires the same kind of public investment that pays for roads co-author of the Center for American Progress report “There’s starting to be discussions with state legislators and people on (Capitol) Hill in D.C who are beginning to take up that mindset,” he said 30 percent of Colorado residents live in child care deserts but the problem is more acute in some communities — including those with higher Hispanic populations where more than 60 percent of residents are Hispanic The same is true in several other Denver neighborhoods classified wholly or partly as child care deserts a variety of factors contribute to the lack of child care — ranging from poverty to the neighborhood’s industrial roots there’s little suitable space for commercial child care — a high-cost Only Swansea Elementary School and a tiny nearby Head Start program offer formal child care in the neighborhood — a total of 81 full-day seats Even the federal government has picked up on the problem — earmarking the ZIP code for special consideration in grant awards for certain child care slots “Our challenge is facilities out there,” said Lance Vieira chief operating officer of Rocky Mountain Service Employment Redevelopment which runs the Head Start program in Elyria-Swansea Some local families send their kids to another Head Start center three miles away in the Sunnyside neighborhood Special busing was provided for the youngsters through last year including because the program switched from half- to full-day In a bid to help satisfy the demand for child care a longtime nonprofit serving families in Elyria-Swansea and Globeville used grant money to open up a 30-seat preschool in the fall of 2016 With no space available in the two neighborhoods leaders settled on a facility in the nearby Cole neighborhood knows what it’s like to struggle with child care She still remembers sending her oldest child to a neighbor’s house when he was a little boy and she was working as a home health aide and she felt confident Ruben would never be abused the boy spent most of his time on the couch and was regularly asked to share the meals Sanchez packed for him with the neighbor’s young daughter who sometimes watched soap operas during the day was anxious about the children getting hurt and discouraged active play The kind of informal care Sanchez used for Ruben — often called family friend and neighbor care — is common in Elyria-Swansea and many other communities parents like it because they know the caregiver well hours are flexible and it’s usually inexpensive or free such unlicensed care is mostly unregulated by the state and quality varies widely who’d eventually added Ruben’s sister and a couple other children to her child care roster maybe I shouldn’t be doing it,’” Sanchez said Sanchez tried a licensed home and two licensed centers outside the neighborhood but didn’t like those options Sanchez wishes there was a child care center in the neighborhood “Just a safe place … with people who actually love to work with kids.” who lives in Elyria-Swansea and works as a clerk for a home visiting program she’s made various child care arrangements for her children Her husband’s aunt helped out for awhile and the two older girls attended Head Start in the Sunnyside neighborhood and later the Highland neighborhood — a short drive to the west her 3-year-old son attends morning preschool at the Focus Points center in the Cole neighborhood and her mother-in-law takes care of him and another youngster in the afternoons two-dozen Spanish-speaking women practiced first aid and CPR on rubber dummies at a Catholic church in north Denver An instructor in pointy cowboy boots walked them through the proper responses to various emergencies — discovering an unconscious child on the ground or handling a seizure without knowing the child’s medical history Olga Montellano — the caregiver who ushered the children inside after hearing the gunshots — was there The four-hour session was part of an intensive course for family, friend and neighbor providers called Providers Advancing Student Outcomes, or PASO The initiative is just one part of United Neighborhoods a Mile High United Way project focused on education health and workforce development in Elyria-Swansea and neighboring Globeville It began last year and is expected to last three to five years The course leads to a common entry-level child care credential and represents a key strategy in the United Neighborhoods plan to address the problem of child care deserts one of several partners in the United Neighborhoods work has run PASO classes in several Front Range communities for years often enrolling mostly undocumented immigrants and paying for the program with private funds The course in Elyria-Swansea is a bit different The City of Denver’s Office of Economic Development — another United Neighborhoods partner — kicked in $130,000 to cover the cost of 14 participants all of whom are legally in the United States City officials say the investment was a chance to help residents climb up the first rungs of the career ladder and improve child care quality at the same time more than $5,000 in federal funding will be used to shepherd some participants through the arduous licensing process that will allow them to offer state-sanctioned child care in their homes Leaders at Denver’s Early Childhood Council say they’ll create eight new Early Head Start slots for children birth to 3 in the 80216 ZIP code by next fall Other initiatives unfolding now or launching in the near future could eventually help boost child care offerings in Elyria-Swansea funded partially by Gary Community Investments and set to start in spring of 2018 relies on a nonprofit called WorkLife Partnership charging employers a membership fee to get help with services — such as child care or housing — that help employees stay on the job executive director of WorkLife Partnership where soon hundreds of construction workers and other kinds of employees will be needed the group will award $5,000 mini-grants to licensed in-home providers The idea is to help them buy new curricula or equipment and figure out how to offer more slots or expand into overnight care WorkLife Partnership is also partnering with the national online marketplace Care.com to ensure those providers — once they expand their capacity or hours — get efficiently matched with families that need child care Romero said the group is already working with 17 in-home providers along I-70 None of the 17 are in Elyria-Swansea or Globeville an Elyria-Swansea resident and community activist said with some residents leery of outsiders pushing in solutions it’s important for leaders of all the projects underway or planned to avoid a “deficit mindset.” They should approach the work “really honoring and respecting the experience and knowledge of child development and child-rearing that is in this neighborhood,” she said Residents and civic leaders all see signs that gentrification is coming to Elyria-Swansea — and sending residents to Adams County one indicator was the gradual disappearance of waitlists for parenting programs that were once over-subscribed it’s near-daily goodbyes staff bid to patrons who are moving out of the area “The reality is these families will be offered so much money for their houses they’re not going to stay,” said Vieira of Rocky Mountain Service Employment Redevelopment “It’s going explode in Globeville and (Elyria) Swansea will be very close behind.” So what will come of efforts to fix the child care desert if the families — and the kids — move away No one expects all current residents to leave Some observers expect fewer large families and an influx of middle-class residents One check on gentrification could be new affordable housing planned for a large new development to be built on a six-acre parcel at the corner of 48th Avenue and Race Street say there will be hundreds of affordable housing units included but the exact number will be determined when a developer is chosen in early 2018 The development will include space for local nonprofits at below-market lease rates The first phase of construction could start in 2019 the interim executive director of Focus Points said the group will apply for some of that space for a childcare facility there The idea is to move the organization’s preschool in the Cole neighborhood to the new development and add care for infants and toddlers “It would be an economic opportunity as well for members of our community and our staff who have been working toward becoming certified early childhood educators,” Castro said the conservancy’s operations and communications director said the need for child care in the neighborhood is well-known but there’s also interest in using the nonprofit space for a medical clinic the developer will make the final decision But even if the new development does include a child care center some observers expect families who can afford to pay for the care will scoop up many slots All the changes bring both hope and uncertainty for long-time residents like Olga Montellano She already believes the PASO program has made her a better caregiver She gets the children in her care outside more and has learned skills and activities to help get her neighbor’s 3-year-old son But whether she stays in the Elyria-Swansea neighborhood is an open question but homes that used to be affordable and small are now unaffordable and small “My preference would be to stay here because I’ve already lived here 15 years,” she said “I don’t know … it seems strange to leave.” CHALKBEAT IS A CIVIC NEWS COMPANY NEWSROOM ©2025 Enrique Ortiz de Montellano mentioned that Claro continues its agenda of bringing fiber optic to homes and businesses in order to improve internet speed and capacity Enrique Ortiz de Montellano has been at the helm of one of the island’s leading telecommunications company landed his first job in the telecommunications industry an elongated mobile phone manufactured by a Japanese company located 6,705 miles away from his native Mexico He was 25 years old and the company cell phone was his first mobile ever “I had graduated from college and was working at a cell phone company,” Ortiz remembered while laughing the young businessman could never have imagined that the bulky and cumbersome device he had just received would become in -a relatively short span of time- an intrinsic part of our lives it was viewed as a service for a certain level of the population Then came its massification and we saw that it was everybody,” Ortiz recalled of the early days The company continues its focus on innovation and customer experience Twenty-five years after that encounter with the device Ortiz sat with THE WEEKLY JOURNAL in a spacious conference room at Claro’s headquarters in Guaynabo to ponder the evolution of the cell phone industry and the voyage that brought him and his family to the island Claro’s parent company América Móvil acquired Puerto Rico Telephone Company from Verizon the businessman -who holds a degree in graphic design and a master’s in business and marketing- became the head of a company that has 3,000 employees and has branded itself as the leader in telecommunications on the island “Claro is among the top 10 employers on the island,” Ortiz said with pride Claro’s CEO was quick to share his views on the island noting that Puerto Ricans have strong Latin American roots and predicting that the grounded telephone line won’t disappear marketing director and regional director for Sonora and Sinaloa giving him the opportunity to learn about different perspectives of the industry the technology connected physical places like houses and businesses But as technology evolved and became wireless the market grew because connections multiplied,” Ortiz noted of the changes in the cell phone sector According to the Puerto Rico Telecommunications Regulatory Board the island has more cell phones than people the agency reported 3,380,477 mobile connections for a population of 3.1 million inhabitants MIAMI—The use of e-commerce has been rapidly expanding across the world and for many consume… Some of us have one or two cell phones plus a tablet,” Ortiz responded the market penetration (the ratio between population and mobile connection) is bigger There are over 9.32 billion mobile connections worldwide in comparison to the current world population of 7.8 billion Claro’s President didn’t reveal details of the company’s mobile sales but indicated that it has 1.5 million subscribers between its mobile About the challenges of doing business in Puerto Rico Ortiz mentioned the slow and bureaucratic permits system “The cell towers bring an additional ingredient we saw the people along the highway trying to get closer to the antennas in an attempt to get signal but now when we are trying to build the antennas closer to their houses while discarding that these structures could pose health risks using cell phones to call more people to join in the protest It’s time to decide if we want a Puerto Rico connected or isolated with a network saturated with users,” he added AT&T’s decision to leave the island and sell its wireless and wireline operations in Puerto Rico and the U.S Virgin Islands to Liberty Latin America won’t affect customers very strong companies will remain on the island That means that the investment and the access to good technology will continue as well as good competition.” Ortiz mentioned that Claro continues its agenda to bring more fiber optic to homes and businesses as to improve the internet’s speed and capacity “It’s a market with very good purchasing power when compared to Latin America but here more than 70 percent of clients have a postpaid service with a monthly payment,” Ortiz indicated of Puerto Rico customers 30 percent of mobile users on the island have an iPhone while the remaining 70 percent carry a device with an Android operating system “Android people have more options and brands technology connected physical places like houses and businesses it began connecting people," -Enrique Ortiz de Montellano Ricardo Hernández will lead interdepartmental integration in order to ease the transformation of the classic model of customer service agency The accounting and advisory firm celebrates its 45th anniversary this year Email notifications are only sent once a day Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: SAN ANTONIO - A pair of arrests have been made in a fatal shooting on the West Side Wednesday evening San Antonio Police officials said Christian Lozano were arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the shooting of Glenn Hector Montellano Police responded to a shooting call at about 8:45 pm Wednesday evening near the corner of SW 21st Street and El Paso Street It all started when 21-year-old Montellano pulled up to the intersection and exchanged words with someone near the road “My understanding is the complainant that was in the car pulled up to the intersection and words were exchanged with someone at the intersection,” explained Sgt Robert Solis And that’s when the shots were fired – as they ran off.” Police tell us the argument escalated into a fight between nearly 30 people Montellano was shot in the head and was transported to University Hospital in critical condition but police said he later died of his injuries Police said charges against Lozano and Barron may be upgraded at a later date The general director of Bienes Nacionales (BN) carried out on Saturday a survey of approximately 30,000 tareas of land owned by the Consejo Estatal del Azúcar (CEA) in the municipalities of Montellano and Imbert During his visit to the lands where the sugar cane plantations of the former Amistad and Montellano sugar mills used to operate Cedeño Ávila assured that these lands would supposedly be used for housing and agricultural projects He also called on the citizens of Puerto Plata not to invade lands that belong to the Dominican State and those who are currently occupying land because they should leave in a civilized manner to avoid being evicted by the public force “It is enough that in this country the individuals believe that the […] North Coast May 2 “It is enough that in this country the individuals believe that the lands of the State do not belong to anyone that must be respected just as if I had 100 tasks with legal title no one can enter my land because whoever enters there I will remove them,” he said He said that he has the authorization of President Luis Abinader to continue recovering State lands in the hands of individuals since they are a public inheritance that must be used to execute development actions for the benefit of the majority The official was accompanied by Richard Hernández Luna coordinator of Bienes Nacionales in Puerto Plata Economy North Coast Local Sports Health DominicanToday.com - The Dominican Republic News Source in English was enjoying a swim when a moment later everyone lost sight of him PUERTO PLATA – A young native of Santiago de Los Caballeros drowned early Sunday afternoon on Cangrejos beach in the municipality of Villa Montellano The deceased was named Keudi Domínguez Durán Durán was swept away by the sea current while enjoying a swim in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean Witnesses of the unfortunate event said that this young man could not swim and when he entered the sea he disappeared from everyone’s sight at exactly 1:36 in the afternoon Several units and volunteers from the Civil Defense and Ambar Rescue showed up at Cangrejos Beach immediately searching for the lifeless body of the young man who […] North Coast January 25 PUERTO PLATA – A young native of Santiago de Los Caballeros drowned early Sunday afternoon on Cangrejos beach in the municipality of Villa Montellano immediately searching for the lifeless body of the young man who was the son of Santiago businessman Pedro Domínguez (Pedro Racing) After almost half an hour of work in the midst of strong waves the lifeguards located the body of the young man and rescued him towards the shore of the beach where he was examined by medical personnel who certified his death due to asphyxiation by immersion The tragedy underscores the dangers of waves and the need to be constantly vigilant in monitoring situations of all persons in the water PUERTO PLATA.- A problem that has been growing is the frequent traffic accidents that occur on the Puerto Plata-Gran Parada-Montellano highway section This situation is a cause for concern among the drivers of thousands of vehicles that travel through this perimeter daily Numerous road accidents have occurred with a balance of deaths and injuries Several citizens who gave their opinion this Thursday asked the Ministry of Public Works and the Montellano City Council to take urgent measures to prevent accidents from continuing in that area They indicated that speeding and the recklessness of many drivers are the leading causes of collisions and accidents in the Gran Parada area where traffic accidents are recorded at all times It is recalled that at the beginning of the course year North Coast February 4 the officer of the Dominican Republic Air Force (FARD) died after the vehicle he was driving caught fire after leaving the road and colliding with a tree The Ministry of Public Works reported this Friday that its brigades are working hard to ensure that by next week the passage of light vehicles over the Cangrejo bridge in Puerto Plata will be provisionally restored after one of its bridge support beams was broken The Deputy Minister of Supervision and Control explained that this bridge has already fulfilled its useful life because it is more than 50 years old Herrera also reported that by order of Minister Deligne Ascención studies and designs are being worked on to construct a new structure the MOPC is working on finding a temporary solution to facilitate vehicular traffic there “The Cangrejo bridge is “fundamental” since it connects the entire route between Puerto Plata North Coast May 1 which is why we are enabling an alternate route through the Los Pérez sector that connects Montellano and Sosúa and surrounding areas work is being done on expanding a speed bump on the road that has been arranged to divert vehicles to facilitate more fluid and faster traffic so that users are not affected He said that the MOPC aspires to be able to go through this alternate route next Tuesday but it is the most expeditious solution at the moment It is recalled that the El Cangrejos bridge suspended traffic due to a displacement of a support beam that allowed a column to break which represents a danger for those who travel along that road teams from the Ministry of Public Works have been working to prepare the road while a solution to the bridge’s situation is sought Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" A provisional bridge using culvert pipes and gravel can be constructed in a short time yeah that short cut is a killers specifically at night it took me 2 hours to get from Sosua to Jumbo Renn Loren   While there are undoubtedly many various help and charity organizations in the Dominican Republic So if you ever wanted to truly make a difference in someone’s life in a way that would greatly help and impact them in their time of need as in an abbreviation for “Go Make a Difference.”  Go Mad is a non-profit organization a small team of three volunteers: Bonnie Smith The group works in 5 communities on the North Coast: Caraballo & Village Ascension (campo above Montellano) While there are undoubtedly many various help and charity organizations in the Dominican Republic, there are far more people in need of them. So if you ever wanted to truly make a difference in someone’s life in a way that would greatly help and impact them in their time of need, you are invited to Go Mad, as in an abbreviation for “Go Make a Difference.”  Go Mad is a non-profit organization Before the pandemic crisis, the Go Mad team has been working on the island for around 10 years helping to provide hope and opportunity to some of the most vulnerable communities in the north coast area They do this by providing free medical care in their four clinics help with the documentation process for the undocumented Go Mad works directly with the community leadership teams to carry out their efforts so that they can create sustainable programs that will help these communities have a better future as well as empowering the talent that already exists in those communities. Aside from the three ex-pat volunteers, all Go Mad staff (teachers We’re all feeling the effects of the current COVID-19 crisis, some more than others. If you’re one of the very fortunate who still has an income, enough to eat, a place to sleep with a roof over your head, good health, and hope, and you’d like to offer a helping hand to those who don’t, please check out Go Mad and contribute whatever you can It will be appreciated more than you could imagine and will make a profoundly positive difference in someone’s life—especially the children You can find out more about Go Mad at http://www.gomadtoday.org/ Marielle Montellano and JM dela Cerna emerged as the champions of “Tawag ng Tanghalan: Duets” on the grand finals of “It’s Showtime!” Saturday outshined eight other singing pairs and claimed the victory in the Final 3 round with an impressive score of 98.3% Their outstanding performance of “Now and Forever” by Air Supply in the final round earned them a standing ovation from the hurados including Kapuso singers Christian Bautista and Mark Bautista Montellano and Dela Cerna received a cash prize of P500,000 and a prestigious Toym Imao trophy Securing the first runner-up position were Kim Nemenzo and John Mark Saga who delivered a heartfelt rendition of “All Out of Love” and achieved a score of 95.3% They were awarded a cash prize of P150,000 for their remarkable performance Completing the Top 3 were Anton Antenocruz and Eumee Capile who captivated the audience with their rendition of “Two Less Lonely People in the World.” These three pairs advanced to the final round after surpassing six other duos in the initial round of the competition Montellano and Dela Cerna already made a lasting impression on the audience with their enchanting performance of “My Heart Will Go On.” Dela Cerna previously placed third in the third season of “Tawag ng Tanghalan,” while Montellano ranked 6th in the first season of the singing contest on “Showtime.” Their moment of triumph coincided with the historic debut of the noontime program on GMA-owned GTV Channel “Showtime” opened a new chapter on Saturday welcoming the Kapuso audience as they officially transferred to GTV the seventh season of “Tawag ng Tanghalan” is set to begin LionhearTV has always believed in what the everyday reader can contribute and has always been open to receiving input Readers are always encouraged to drop us their thoughts either by either by leaving a comment on a post or contact us directly – email us at lionheartvnet@gmail.com