Each year we ask our community to support the LFHS Foundation through donations and sponsorships for the Annual Spring Luncheon and Pitch Night. Every donation and sponsorship is valued and vital to our success, making it possible for us to continue investing in educational excellence. Foundation grants support, enrich, and enhance the Lake Forest High School experience for all students, faculty, and staff. Over the years, the Foundation has awarded hundreds of grants, impacting all areas of the school. While few in number, this year's grants will have a significant impact on the learning experiences available for students. THANK YOU! Visit our website to learn more.

The Lake Forest High School Foundation celebrated its 23rd annual Grant Day on Friday, March 14th. Foundation Trustees traveled the halls of LFHS with great news for grant recipients - their grants had been funded. In addition to the four new grants awarded on Friday, the Foundation funded two off-cycle grants earlier this year that have already been implemented. Congratulations to all of our grant recipients!

The Lake Forest High School Foundation is grateful to our Grants Committee. The 2025 Grants Committee was led by Vice Chair of Grants, Jennifer Fitzgerald and included Judy Gofron, Michelle Hill, Kate Jackson, Sandy King, Nicole Nassar, Carla Ojha, Monika Toczyski, and Tammy Ward. This group of dedicated volunteers carefully vetted and considered all grant applications. They read the applications, researched the requests, heard presentations from applicants requesting more than $10,000, and worked with the administration to ensure that the implementation of the grants would be supported within the school. After thoughtful deliberation guided by detailed criteria, they present the grants they think should be funded to the Board of Trustees for approval.

Fashion Design Equipment & Tools

Off-Cycle Grant Fall 2024

The Business of Fashion has been a very popular class at LFHS. The Art Department became aware that many of the students in the course were interested in designing and making their own garments. So they decided to offer a Fashion Design course. Two sections were filled immediately and it became evident that these students wanted to learn to sew as part of the course. As this wasn’t in the initial plan, the teachers reached out to the LFHS Foundation for support. This grant provided six sewing machines with warranties and covers, 24 pairs of sewing scissors, 13 sewing storage boxes, and 13 3-piece rotating cutting sets. For implementation, this grant relies on previous LFHS Foundation grants which provided teacher training at SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) and iPads which are used in the fabric design unit. Sewing is not only a way for students to express themselves through art, but it is also an important life skill that is not being taught like this in any other course. Photo: Custom fabrics designed by Fashion Design students using iPads. Mentioned in the video below. Next, they will use them to make pillows.

Driver’s Education Vision Screener

Off-Cycle Grant Fall 2024

With a change in the law, the Illinois Department of Motor Vehicles now allows the learning permit test and driving permit eye exam to be overseen by local high schools. Therefore, students can take and complete not only the permit test but also the eye test at LFHS.  Unfortunately, LFHS did not own a certified vision screener, so the Driver’s Ed Department turned to the Foundation and requested an Illinois State Certified Vision Screener and Software to be able to provide this service to our students. This grant eliminates a trip to the DMV for our students and parents (freeing up spots at the DMV for others).  Furthermore, it eliminates the need for students to leave school during the day to get their permits.  Finally, it ensures that all students in driver’s ed have their permit on the first day of behind-the-wheel classes.  

Pickleball & Table Tennis

Wellness and Student Activities 2025 Grant

To promote wellness and emotional well-being, as well as remain relevant in teaching the latest sports (and creating/supporting clubs around those sports) the wellness department plans to expand its table tennis offerings and introduce pickleball. This grant provides 6 table tennis tables, 10 pickleball nets, 50 paddle/ball/bag sets, and storage for the equipment.  This will allow all students to play simultaneously in wellness classes and support more robust clubs. The introduction of pickleball and the expansion of table tennis at LFHS will support and enrich the educational experience of students, faculty, and staff in meaningful ways.

Driving Simulators

Wellness 2025 Grant

While perhaps not STEM in the traditional sense, bringing science and technology to driving has become a necessity. According to USAToday.com “Generation Z no longer values driver's licenses the same way past generations did. Only one in 25 licensed drivers in the U.S. is 19 or younger - a decline from more than two decades prior, according to data from the Department of Transportation.” Students are not clamoring to drive anymore, and their parents are happy not to take them out. However, the State of Illinois requires all students pass driver’s ed to graduate high school. What this means is that more and more students are arriving at driver’s ed classes having never been behind the wheel. They experience significant anxiety about the process as the teacher hands them the keys. With rushed, over-scheduled students, who would prefer not to drive, the students are not as comfortable behind the wheel as they once were. 

This grant will provide four cab-style driving simulation modules to supplement the driver’s education program and combat this issue. These cab simulators actually have the feel of being in a car with a wrap-around screen as the front window. As part of the Foundation Grant Committee’s vetting process, they visited Libertyville High School and saw their eight simulators in action. In speaking with the teachers at Libertyville, we discovered that the cab style truly alleviated the stress of being behind the wheel, and gave students tons of opportunities to practice skills to increase confidence. The onboard computer includes 16 modules for learning and also can include a separate series on distracted driving. 

Furthermore, acquiring these simulators will provide our students with learning disabilities additional time to repeat and learn needed skills, and for those who will never drive, they will provide the opportunity to know what it is like to drive a car. 

With the acquisition of the simulators, the curriculum of driver’s ed at LFHS will change. Going from two days of classroom and one day of driving, the students will now be in the simulation lab one day a week as well. Increasing the amount of time behind the wheel, and providing relevant, pointed practice and repeated experiences, will ensure that LFHS students will be the best drivers possible – whether they are driving downtown Lake Forest, or on Route 60.

Student Engineered Design Roland TrueVIS SG3-300 Eco-Solvent Inkjet Printer Cutter (SED)

Educational Technology & Student Activities 2025 Grant

Over the last decade, LFHS, with the support of the Foundation, has been building out its offerings related to STEM.  As the high school undergoes a major renovation, LFHS will soon have a fully functional, integrated, state-of-the-art maker space.  Included in the space will be 3D printers, a laser cutter, a plasma cutter, a CNC machine, computers with CAD software, and hand and power tools, many of which have been provided through Foundation grants over the years. Missing from that list is an integrated vinyl printer and cutter.

According to Amtek Company, “Vinyl cutters are a must for any maker space focused on design and fabrication.  They allow for the creation of custom stickers, decals, and even apparel…Vinyl cutters are essential for projects involving graphic design, custom branding, and large-scale prints.”

Adding a Roland Printer Cutter will allow students to gain access to an entirely new medium of design.  It will bring to their fingertips the world of customized stickers, banners, custom apparel, die-cut decals, exhibition graphics, fine art, heat transfers, industrial marking, label printing, posters, promotional products, signage, T-shirts, wall and window graphics at an affordable price and with a quick turn around time.

Furthermore, this grant increases inclusiveness, builds teamwork, and allows smaller groups/clubs the ability to advertise through signage, stickers, and apparel without paying expensive layout fees or shipping that are inherent when trying to order custom materials at a low volume. 

Finally, this grant not only provides an expanded media for Art classes and clubs, it will also further support the LFHS Business Incubator and other business classes at LFHS.  By adding a vinyl printer/cutter to the offerings, students will have a real-world ability to design creative and enticing advertising pieces to help raise awareness about their fledgling companies and to support them in their growth.  

Fundamentally, the Roland Printer/Cutter will encourage student creativity and expression, will save on costs for external printing, promote sustainability (only print what you need not print to meet a minimum purchase), and will boost school spirit with custom designs created by LFHS students. This versatile device will enhance student activities, support educational initiatives, and foster creativity throughout the school. This resource will directly benefit students, faculty, and staff while providing unique engagement opportunities.

TI 84+ CE Calculators

Student Support Services 2025 Grant

Lake Forest High School is dedicated to providing all students with the resources and opportunities they need to succeed academically, especially in preparation for the ACT, a critical test for college admissions. In our effort to level the playing field and provide students with the tools necessary to achieve their best scores this grant requested by Support Services will provide 50 TI-84 Plus CE Graphing Calculators. These calculators will support our ACT Study Program, benefiting both students who cannot afford a personal calculator and those who need access to advanced features available only on the TI-84 Plus CE.

One of the main barriers to academic success, especially for students preparing for standardized tests like the ACT, is the accessibility of essential tools. Some students in our community cannot afford the advanced calculators for the math portion of the ACT, which is a vital part of their scores. Without access to these tools, they are at a significant disadvantage. This grant will provide calculators to students who would otherwise not have access to them and would have to make do with lesser, more rudimentary tools. 

The TI-84 Plus CE is equipped with powerful features not found in basic, classroom-ready calculators. These include advanced graphing capabilities, factoring tools, statistical analysis, and other functionality that are critical for students to practice and use during the ACT exam. While many students have access to classroom calculators, they often lack the advanced features of the TI-84 Plus CE, which are essential for solving complex math problems efficiently. By providing these calculators, we ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have access to the same tools, promoting a level playing field during preparation and on test day.

While it is certainly the case that students may take the ACT successfully with an ordinary scientific or classroom calculator, putting a TI-84 Plus CE in the hands of each of our students will provide them with math tools they may not access otherwise.  

Furthermore, in making this grant, David Hain has assured the Foundation that he will work to distribute the relevant information on test-taking strategies to all math classes and will work to ensure the math department recommends this calculator to all students going forward.

Standing Grant: MVP Funding

Business Department 2025 Grant

Since 2015, the Foundation has been funding this grant annually. It provides money that is used to reimburse teams in the Business Incubator program for Minimum Viable Product (MVP) phase expenses. Each February, the teams in the Business Incubator program present their MVP Pitches to our volunteer judges. Each team explains the business they are hoping to develop, requests funding for planned MVP activities, and the judges provide feedback on their pitches and the viability of their business propositions.

We hope you'll join us at Knollwood Club on Friday, May 2ndfor this year's Annual Spring Luncheon. We are currently seeking Auction Donations and SPONSORS for this event. Event tickets and raffle tickets are on sale now! Invitations will be arriving in mailboxes after Spring Break to welcome everyone home. Please contact Kristin Carruthers to donate items to the auction. Funds raised will go toward future grants at LFHS.