CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA – Hacienda La Puente Unified Technology Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA) Ricardo Recinos has been named an Adobe Creative Educator (ACE) Innovator and will join a select group of K-12 educators worldwide who are using creativity to lead change in education as part of Adobe’s 2025-26 ACE cohort.

Recinos has spent the last seven years as a Tech TOSA after nearly two decades teaching high school Spanish. As part of a Tech TOSA team with partner Teresa Magpayo-Castro, Recinos helps teachers to navigate platforms such as Aeries, Parent Square, and the Canvas Learning Management System, and supports student and parent technology education.

“It is an honor for Hacienda La Puente Unified to be part of the Adobe family,” Recinos said. “As Tech TOSAs, Teresa and I are responsible for finding emerging technologies that can even the playing field for our students, then assisting our teachers while they build their technological capacity, supporting them as they implement the new tech into their classrooms.”

Under the leadership of HLPUSD Director of Data, Research and Innovation Lilia Picado, Recinos and Magpayo-Castro were instrumental in bringing an Adobe Creativity Institute professional development seminar led by Adobe digital technicians in July 2024. Nearly 200 District teachers received an opportunity to brush up on their tech using new digital tools and apps, including starting a digital creative action plan and timeline for the 2024-25 school year.

“Congratulations to Ricardo for being named an ACE Innovator and providing an opportunity for our entire District to learn and use the latest technology and programs to support our students’ learning,” Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Alfonso Jiménez said. “We are grateful to all of our teachers and staff for taking the initiative to merge innovation and learning to ensure the success of our students.”

Recinos’ interest in using tech as a teaching tool has been motivated in large part by his teenage daughter “T-Rex,” who struggled with reading as a kindergartner.

T-Rex was already falling behind in her studies when the pandemic hit in 2020, and soon after she lost confidence in school and reading, refusing to read the books her father gave her.

Employing Microsoft Immersive Reader, Recinos began writing his own stories to share with his daughter, creating characters like dinosaurs and unicorns, to keep T-Rex’s interest. When Recinos started running out of ideas for stories, he discovered Microsoft Reading Coach, an artificial intelligence program that creates stories uniquely tailored to the student’s interests after the young readers select their own characters, settings, and reading levels. Students read the story aloud while Reading Coach assesses their pronunciation and notes which words the students are having trouble with.

T. Rex immediately embraced Reading Coach, which she said boosted her confidence and made going to school fun again. Now in middle school, T. Rex is looking forward to entering high school in the fall.

Seeing the impact that it made to boost his daughter’s love for reading, Reading Coach was made available for a trial run at Baldwin Academy during the 2024-25 school year, and has been incorporated Districtwide for the 2025-26 school year.

“Reading Coach allows our students to have a say in what they are reading,” Recinos said. “It’s a fun way for them to work on their fluency without realizing they are learning, because they feel like it’s a game. They are earning badges and getting awards. As they unlock their potential, it makes me excited to see where it will lead. But we couldn’t do this without our amazing teachers, who are just as eager to learn.”

Recinos has come far since emigrating from El Salvador with no English language skills and being placed in a remedial reading class. In his long career in education, Recinos has worked tirelessly to ensure his students never have to go through a similar experience.

“When I came from El Salvador, I didn’t understand a word of English. As a teacher I have seen students with the same struggles, and have dedicated my career to giving them all the tools they need to succeed,” Recinos said. “As an ACE Innovator, I will have access to a wealth of new software, applications, and teaching tools, and can connect with other ACE Innovators at any time.”

PHOTO CAPTION

ACEINNOVATOR1: HLPUSD Tech TOSA Ricardo Recinos (in white shirt) is one of a select group of K-12 educators worldwide who have been named Adobe Creative Educator (ACE) Innovators.

ACEINNOVATOR2: Recinos (right) and his daughter “T-Rex.” Using Microsoft Reading Coach, Recinos fostered a love of reading with T-Rex.