Category Archives: Education

del Castillo Lends Voice to Interactive Children’s Storybook App

Posted on by
Reply

Kate del Castillo has booked her latest project… And it could entertain children for hours on end.

Kate del Castillo

The 39-year-old Mexican actress and telenovela star has lent her voice to a tech-enhanced bilingual storybook app that’s based on a little-known children’s book dating back about a century.

Entitled Punky Dunk and The Gold Fish, the whimsical tale centers on the ultimate curious cat, Punky Dunk, with the book redesigned as an interactive early reader for the iPad.

Punky Dunk and the Gold Fish

“Punky Dunk is a charming series of children’s tales. The artist Kat Llewellyn wanted to develop them in this unique electronic way. Her excitement and enthusiasm for telling children’s stories sold me on the project,” says actor Matthew Modine, who also lent his voice to the project. “The idea of turning these into interactive apps seemed like an exciting way to get children involved in reading, which was invaluable to me growing up.”

The storybook app was designed as part of the Punky Dunk Project, using lost literature to develop an imaginative and dynamic learning experience for young readers.

Punky Dunk App

In homage to the original book, the app has been carefully hand-drawn to reflect the illustrations and watercolors of the 1912 print edition.

To celebrate the book’s centennial, it features 101 interactive sounds and animations, expertly coded by Glow Interactive.

Punky Dunk and The Gold Fish is being released by Dumfun Productions, in association with Cinco Dedos Películas.

It’s available through the iTunes Store for iPad and the Amazon Appstore for the Kindle Fire.

Padrón Receives Carnegie Leadership Award

Posted on by
Reply

He’s been recognized as one of the nation’s foremost educators… And, now Dr. Eduardo Padrón has received a $500,000 prize for his leadership.

The Miami Dade College President has been honored the Carnegie Corporation Centennial Academic Leadership Award.

The 67-year-old educator—who arrived in the United States as a Cuban refugee at the age of 15—is one of only two higher education leaders in the country to receive the prestigious recognition, which includes $500,000 in unrestricted funds for the President to use for academic initiatives.

One of the nation’s most coveted honors, the award recognizes individuals who, in addition to fulfilling their administrative and managerial roles with dedication and creativity, have demonstrated outstanding commitment to excellence and equity in undergraduate education, the liberal arts, curricular innovation, reform of K-12 education and the promotion of strong links between their institution and their local communities.

Padrón’s work at Miami Dade College has been hailed as a model of innovation in higher education. He’s credited with engineering a culture of success that has produced impressive results in student access, retention, graduation and overall achievement. MDC enrolls and graduates more minorities, including Hispanics and African-Americans, than any other institution in the country.

He’s nationally respected for his advocacy on behalf of underserved populations in higher education, and his in-depth research report, “A Deficit of Understanding,” highlights the funding crisis that threatens access for low-income and minority students.

Dr. Padrón’s accomplishments at Miami Dade College have been touted by the national media, including The New York Times, Time, The Wall Street Journal and the Chronicle of Higher Education.