We connect students around the world to primary source experts from a wide variety of topics and subjects. For more information, visit edutainmentlearning.com.
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A.J. Wasserstein is an entrepreneur, investor, author, and award-winning professor at the Yale School of Management, where he helps students learn about entrepreneurship, leadership, and what it takes to successfully build and grow a business.
Before becoming a professor, A.J. spent nearly two decades building a company of his own. He founded ArchivesOne, grew the business to approximately 400 employees, and eventually sold it to Iron Mountain. He later served as president of Onesource Water, helping grow it into one of the largest companies of its kind in the United States.
Today, A.J. uses those real-world experiences to help the next generation of entrepreneurs and leaders. At Yale, he teaches students that there are many different ways to become an entrepreneur—including purchasing and improving an existing business rather than always starting something from scratch. His commitment to students has earned him multiple Faculty Teaching Excellence Awards at Yale.
But A.J.'s message goes far beyond business and making money. As the author of What Matters Most: A Young Adult's Roadmap to Life, he encourages young people to think deeply about their values, relationships, happiness, careers, and the kind of life they ultimately want to create. The book began as something he wrote for his own children to share lessons he hoped would help them navigate adulthood.
Through his experiences as an entrepreneur, business leader, investor, professor, and father, A.J. encourages young people to develop grit, take thoughtful risks, learn from setbacks, explore different opportunities, and understand that there isn't just one path to success.
When A.J. joins us, students will have the opportunity to learn about entrepreneurship, leadership, choosing a career, overcoming challenges, defining success, and discovering what truly matters in life.
Mark Inglis is a New Zealand mountaineer, adventurer, scientist, author, and Paralympian who made history as the first double amputee to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain on Earth.
Mark's journey to Everest began with an extraordinary story of survival. As a young man, he worked as a professional mountain guide and search-and-rescue mountaineer. During a climbing expedition on New Zealand's Mount Cook, Mark and a fellow climber became trapped by a severe storm and were stranded in an ice cave for nearly two weeks. Severe frostbite eventually resulted in Mark losing both of his legs below the knees.
Rather than allowing that experience to end his adventures, Mark learned to use prosthetic legs and returned to the mountains. He also became an accomplished cyclist, representing New Zealand internationally and winning a silver medal at the 2000 Paralympic Games.
In 2006, Mark achieved what many thought impossible when he successfully reached the summit of Mount Everest, becoming the first double amputee in history to accomplish the feat.
Beyond athletics and mountaineering, Mark has worked as a scientist, author, humanitarian, and motivational speaker, using his experiences to encourage people around the world to reconsider what is possible when they encounter obstacles.
Mark's story isn't simply about climbing mountains. It's about resilience, adapting to circumstances you cannot change, setting ambitious goals, and continuing to move forward when life takes an unexpected turn.
His journey offers students a powerful lesson: the challenges we face may change our path, but they don't have to determine how far we can go.
Judge Jed S. Rakoff is one of the most respected and influential federal judges in the United States. He serves as a Senior United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York, where he has presided over major cases involving business, finance, civil rights, national security, and the criminal justice system.
Before becoming a judge, Rakoff worked as a federal prosecutor in New York, where he investigated and prosecuted complex financial crimes. He later spent many years in private practice before being nominated to the federal bench by President Bill Clinton in 1996.
Throughout his career, Judge Rakoff has become known for his independence, willingness to ask difficult questions, and thoughtful views on the American legal system. He has written and spoken extensively about issues including wrongful convictions, mass incarceration, the death penalty, corporate accountability, and the role judges play in protecting justice and the rule of law.
He is also the author of Why the Innocent Plead Guilty and the Guilty Go Free, which explores some of the most challenging questions facing the American justice system.
Through his remarkable career as a prosecutor, attorney, judge, professor, and author, Judge Jed Rakoff offers students a fascinating look inside the legal system—and an opportunity to learn how critical thinking, courage, fairness, and a commitment to justice can shape a lifetime of public service.
Dr. Keisuke Inomura is an Assistant Professor of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography, where he studies the tiny microorganisms that play an enormous role in keeping the ocean—and our planet—functioning.
His research focuses on marine microbes such as phytoplankton and how their biology affects ocean ecosystems, nutrient cycles, and the global carbon cycle. Dr. Inomura leads URI’s Quantitative Microbiology Group, which develops mathematical models of microbial cells to better understand biological, ecological, and biogeochemical processes in the ocean.
Originally from Japan, Dr. Inomura studied environmental engineering and bioproduction environmental sciences at Kyushu University before continuing his research at MIT. His work has included developing improved ocean carbon-cycle models to help scientists better understand and predict how climate change may affect the oceans.
Through his work, Dr. Inomura combines oceanography, microbiology, mathematics, and computer modeling to explore how some of the smallest organisms on Earth can have a major impact on the entire planet. His career offers students a fascinating look at how different areas of science can come together to answer some of the biggest questions about our oceans and climate.
Jack Barsky — Former KGB Spy, Author & Intelligence Expert. Jack Barsky has lived a life shaped by difficult choices, major transitions, and powerful lessons about identity, responsibility, and change.
Born in East Germany as Albrecht Dittrich, Jack was recruited as a young man by Soviet intelligence and later sent to the United States under a false identity during the Cold War. For years, he lived a double life that required secrecy and deception and ultimately came with serious personal consequences.
Over time, Jack began questioning the path he had chosen. His experiences in the United States, his relationships, and becoming a father caused him to rethink his priorities and the kind of life he wanted to lead. He eventually separated himself from Soviet intelligence and later cooperated with U.S. authorities after his past was discovered.
Jack went on to build a successful career in information technology and business leadership. He is also the author of Deep Undercover: My Secret Life and Tangled Allegiances as a KGB Spy in America.
Today, Jack speaks openly about his experiences not to celebrate espionage, but to help others understand the importance of critical thinking, personal responsibility, decision-making, identity, and the possibility of changing direction in life. His story gives students a unique opportunity to explore how choices can shape a person's future and what it means to learn from the past.
Dr. Batatinha is an exercise physiologist and immunologist whose research explores how physical activity affects the immune system. Her work focuses on understanding how both short-term and long-term exercise can influence immune cell function and strengthen the body’s ability to fight cancer.
She also studies how factors such as fitness level, body composition, obesity, and diabetes can affect the way immune cells function and use energy. Ultimately, Dr. Batatinha hopes to develop exercise-based interventions that can support immune function, improve recovery, and enhance outcomes for cancer patients.
Dr. Batatinha earned her doctorate from the University of São Paulo in Brazil. She later moved to the United States to complete her postdoctoral training at the University of Arizona, where she conducted preclinical research examining how exercise affects the movement and anti-tumor activity of immune cells.
She is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and the International Society of Exercise Immunology. Her work brings together exercise science, immunology, and cancer research to better understand how something as accessible as physical activity may play an important role in health and recovery.
Dr. Danny Wescott is a biological anthropologist and professor at Texas State University, where he also serves as Director of the Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State, known as FACTS.
His research focuses on forensic anthropology—the science of using human skeletal remains to help answer important questions about identity, trauma, and what may have happened after death. Dr. Wescott works on developing and testing methods that help forensic anthropologists reconstruct biological profiles, identify patterns of trauma, and estimate the postmortem interval.
He also studies long-bone biomechanics to better understand how activity, behavior, and lifestyle can leave clues in the human skeleton. This research helps scientists learn more about people from both modern and past populations and explore how human skeletal structure has changed over time because of environmental, cultural, and evolutionary influences.
In addition to his research, Dr. Wescott is a dedicated teacher and mentor who has worked with students at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels. His career gives students a fascinating look at how anthropology, anatomy, biology, and forensic science can come together to solve real-world questions and better understand the human story.
Freda Scheuer is a decorated intelligence officer who served over three decades at CIA working in counterterrorism. She began her career as a graduate fellow in 1988 and went on to become a pioneer in counterterrorism targeting. She was chief of the CIA unit charged with destroying al-Qa’ida and worked with partners in the United States and globally to identify and hunt down terrorists and thwart their attacks.
She retired in 2021 as the Deputy Chief of Operations for Homeland and Strategic Threats at the CIA’s Counterterrorism Mission Center. She is the recipient of the Intelligence Medal of Merit, The Director’s Award, and the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal. She used her experience leading and mentoring teams—largely comprised of women—at CIA to become a certified life and leadership coach. She started own her business called YBeU Life Coaching for Women where she still loves supporting women to trust their gut, take smart risks, and make a difference.
Photo credit to October Grace Media
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Edutainment Learning? Edutainment Learning is an online educational platform that connects students and teachers to primary sources of learning from a wide variety of subjects. Our goal is to provide students access to in-person conversations with industry leaders, historical figures, athletes, musicians, and more.
Do I need to pay for this service? No! Our newsletter, programming, and student worksheets are accessible to everyone for free.
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How do I find the student worksheets? Go to edutainmentlearning.com/podcasts to download free student worksheets.
