Hacienda La Puente Unified Educators Transform Teaching with Tech at Adobe Creativity Institute

 Hacienda La Puente Unified educators received an opportunity to enhance their tech skills, while discovering new digital tools and apps that will help them to initiate creativity in their classrooms during an all-day Adobe Creativity Institute professional development seminar, held on July 29.

Nearly 200 HLPUSD teachers attended the seminar, making it the biggest cohort to ever attend an Adobe Creativity Institute event. The participants who completed the seminar received a certificate of achievement for completing six hours of accredited professional learning and earned Adobe Creative Educator Level 1 and Level 2 badges.

“What is so impressive with Hacienda La Puente’s record-breaking Adobe Creative Institute cohort is that a very large percentage of teachers in the District will be able to implement their training on the first day of school,” Adobe engagement manager Jackson Shaad said. “When teachers are collaborating with their colleagues, they can speak the same language. It brings critical mass to the District and the potential to positively impact students.”

The seminar was divided into four sessions, covering creative curriculum, creative processes, digital portfolios, and easy assessment strategies. Each session included a digital task for educators to complete, including creating graphics, videos, and websites, using Adobe Express software, led by certified Adobe digital technicians and teachers.  

The Adobe webpages that HLP teachers created displayed work completed throughout the seminar, including identifying learning goals for the 2024-25 school year, creating an identity graphic and corresponding video, and starting a digital creative action plan that details what the teacher will do in five days, five weeks, and five months into the school year.

The District began its partnership with Adobe in August 2017 when it purchased licenses to integrate its software into technology-based high school courses and utilized by District office staff. In February 2023, the partnership was strengthened at the Adobe Headquarters in San Jose when Superintendent Dr. Alfonso Jiménez reconnected with the software company during a presentation on the benefits of students using Artificial Intelligence to prepare for the workforce led by Adobe Education Leader Martin Cisneros.  After the keynote, Jiménez connected with Cisneros to discuss training opportunities for Hacienda La Puente Unified teachers and administrators.

HLPUSD Director of Data, Research and Innovation, Lilia Picado followed up and initiated the Adobe Creative Institute and worked with District Technology Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSA) Ricardo Recinos and Teresa Magpayo-Castro to bring the professional development seminar to the District. According to Picado, there is a proactive need for teachers to keep up on the latest in classroom technology and learn what artificial intelligence (AI) can teach them.

“AI has a huge role to play as we think about the future of education by preparing teachers and giving them the tools that they need to succeed in a changing world,” Picado said. “The turnout was tremendous, and it is amazing to see so many teachers come together for a common goal. Thank you to Adobe learning advisor Martin Cisneros for helping to bring this program to Hacienda La Puente Unified.”

The large turnout for the Adobe Creativity Institute reflects the Districtwide enthusiasm for learning new digital programs and narrowing the technology gap, not just between teacher and student, but also teacher and teacher. Throughout the day, veteran educators and newer hires collaborated with each other to best understand the new technology, using trust and teamwork to guide them through their lessons.

“Thank you to our dedicated and diligent Hacienda La Puente educators for making this such a successful professional development day. Our teachers have an unquenchable thirst for learning new techniques and methods that can spark innovation in the classroom,” Jiménez said. “We are looking forward to an exciting and productive new school year as we continue to provide transformative learning experiences for all students.”

Photo Captions

HLPUSD_TECH1: From left to right: Hacienda La Puente Unified TechTOSA Teresa Magpayo-Castro, HLPUSD Director of Data, Research and Innovation Lilia Picado and TechTOSA Ricardo Recinos support educators as they focus on creating with AI during the Adobe Creativity Institute seminar on July 29.

HLPUSD_TECH2: Hacienda La Puente Unified educators collaborate while creating a graphic using Adobe Express digital tools during a collaborative all-day Adobe Creativity Institute summer seminar on July 29.

HLPUSD_TECH3: Adobe Creativity Educator supports Hacienda La Puente Unified educators through an AI workshop during a summer seminar on July 29.