CITY OF INDUSTRY—An East Los Angeles educator who used artificial intelligence to help his daughter learn to read has been selected as an Adobe Creative Educator Innovator, joining a worldwide group of K-12 teachers leading educational innovation.
Ricardo Recinos, a technology teacher on special assignment for Hacienda La Puente Unified School District, will join Adobe’s 2025-26 ACE cohort after seven years helping teachers navigate digital platforms and supporting student technology education.
Recinos’ journey to the recognition began with a personal challenge: his daughter “T-Rex” was struggling with reading in kindergarten and losing confidence in school.
“When the pandemic hit in 2020, she was already falling behind in her studies and soon after lost confidence in school and reading, refusing to read the books her father gave her,” Recinos said.
Recinos began writing custom stories featuring dinosaurs and unicorns to maintain his daughter’s interest. When he ran out of story ideas, he discovered an AI program that creates personalized stories based on students’ selected characters, settings and reading levels.
The program assesses pronunciation while students read aloud and identifies challenging words, turning reading practice into a game-like experience with badges and awards.
Now in middle school, T-Rex is preparing for high school in the fall.
The success with his daughter led Recinos to bring the AI program to Baldwin Academy for a trial run during the 2024-25 school year. The program has since expanded districtwide for 2025-26.
“It is an honor for Hacienda La Puente Unified to be part of the Adobe family,” Recinos said. “Teresa and I are responsible for finding emerging technologies that can even the playing field for our students.”
Superintendent Alfonso Jiménez praised Recinos’ selection, noting the district’s commitment to merging innovation with learning to ensure student success.
Recinos’ educational advocacy stems from his own experience emigrating from El Salvador without English language skills and being placed in remedial reading classes.
“When I came from El Salvador, I didn’t understand a word of English,” Recinos said. “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.”
As an ACE Innovator, Recinos will access new software, applications and teaching tools while connecting with fellow innovators worldwide.
