Edutainment Learning is a program hosted by educator Ralph Krauss which connects students around the world to primary source experts from a wide variety of topics and subjects.
Are you an educator? Go to edutainmentlearning.com/podcasts to download student worksheets for every episode!
Frank Abagnale Jr. is one of the world's most respected authorities on the subjects of forgery, embezzlement and secure documents. For over forty years he has lectured to and consulted with hundreds of financial institutions, corporations and government agencies around the world. He later gained notoriety in the late 1970s by claiming a diverse range of workplace frauds, many of which have since been placed in doubt. In 1980, Abagnale co-wrote his autobiography, Catch Me If You Can, which built a narrative around these claimed frauds. The book inspired the film of the same name directed by Steven Spielberg in 2002, in which Abagnale was portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. He has also written four other books. Abagnale runs Abagnale and Associates, a consulting firm. Are you an educator? Go to edutainmentlearning.com/podcasts to download student worksheets for every episode!
PJ Ramsey is a US Veteran and Former Navy SEAL. PJ is an advocate for combatting veteran suicide and raising awareness through physical challenges and speaking engagements. On September 14, PJ will take to Lake Erie along with other veterans and individuals for a 10k open water swim to benefit The Step Up Foundation. Visit stepupfoundation.org and stepupswim.org to learn more and to support veterans affected by mental health.
Dr. Rita McGrath is a best-selling author, sought-after speaker, and longtime professor at Columbia Business School. As one of the world’s top experts on innovation and growth, Rita is regularly published in the Harvard Business Review. She is consistently ranked among the Top 10 management thinkers in the world and was ranked #1 for strategy by Thinkers50. Rita is the author of the best-selling The End of Competitive Advantage (Harvard Business Review Press, 2013). Her most recent book is Seeing Around Corners: How to Spot Inflection Points in Business Before They Happen (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019). Are you an educator? Go to edutainmentlearning.com/podcasts to download student worksheets for every episode!
Liz Booker is a retired Coast Guard helicopter pilot and writer for young adults. Liz enlisted in the Coast Guard at 18 and worked as a deckhand and ship navigator for five years before going to Officer Candidate School. A year later she completed Navy flight training and flew the H65 Dolphin helicopter out of San Francisco, Miami, and Los Angeles. She had been on Active Duty for 15 years and was an O4 before she finally earned a bachelor’s degree online with American Military University and applied for the Coast Guard’s graduate school programs. In 2008 she completed a Master’s in Public Administration at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. She spent the last six years of her 28-year career in Joint billets as the Targeting Chief and Deputy J3 at Joint Interagency Task Force South coordinating counter-narcotics interdictions in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, and as the Senior Defense Official to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean working for Southern Command out of the U.S. Embassy in Bridgetown. While she was assigned to JIATF-SOUTH, she used the rest of her GI Bill to earn a second master’s degree in writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Liz’s Harvard experience gave her the confidence and skills to network and advocate for the Coast Guard’s women in aviation. It also opened her aperture to how she might positively impact the wider aviation culture and demographics through writing adventure fiction for young readers. She retired in 2019 to write full time, but was challenged to maintain her momentum during Covid, feeling isolated from the aviation community. As a way to reconnect, she launched the Aviatrix Book Club on Facebook. That small idea has blossomed into a rich network of readers and writers centered around books featuring women in aviation. Liz hosts the Aviatrix Book Review website and podcast where she interviews authors about their books and their writing and publishing journeys. The authors are connected through the Aviatrix Writers Facebook Group, where they encourage and mentor other women in aviation to share their stories through writing.
Steve Binder is an American producer and director. He found success behind the camera on television shows showcasing music, when he was only in his early 20s. He was also influential in creating music programs with racially and ethnically diverse casts, featuring a variety of musical styles. Steve is an Emmy and ACE award-winning producer, director, writer, educator, and Golden Globe nominee. In 1968, Steve conceived, directed, and produced ELVIS, The ‘68 Comeback Special. TV Guide called this landmark event “the second greatest musical moment in television history next to the Beatles' debut on the Ed Sullivan Show.” Steve also proudly served in the U.S. Army in Europe as an announcer for the Armed Forces Radio network. He is currently an active member of the Directors and Producers Guilds of America and serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California. Are you an educator? Go to edutainmentlearning.com/podcasts to download student worksheets for every episode!