Grants Allow Students to See Massive Dinosaur Skulls, Hear From Authors and More
- Liz Weithas
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
By Liz Weithas In April, the Spirit of 67 Foundation awarded 30 grants totaling $145,905 to District 67 schools for the 2026-2027 school year. This allows Lake Forest children to enjoy incredible educational and cultural experiences that enrich their learning -- and also add a lot of fun to their school days.
During Grant Week, volunteers from Spirit of 67 visited a different district school each day to announce their school’s awarded grants. At each school, they showcased two of the awarded grants and placed a special mailbox in each library for students to make their own suggestions for future grants.
The Wankel Tyrannosaurus Rex skull known as Norm visited all three Lake Forest elementary schools thanks to a grant.
In March, Lake Forest elementary school students had the opportunity to meet Norm, a full-size fiberglass cast of the Wankel Tyrannosaurus Rex skull on loan from the Field Museum to District 67 schools. This same dinosaur, whose original fossil is now on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., ruled earth around 66 million years ago and gave these students a rare opportunity to be up close to the king of the dinosaurs.
My daughter was one of the students who attended at Sheridan School as Norm was rolled into the gymnasium on a five-foot-tall viewing platform, through a doorway that required custodial staff to remove door brackets to allow him through because of his size. She and her classmates sat awe-struck by the size of his skull and teeth, as they virtually met with Jeff Schroeder, the Field Museum programs coordinator, who helped ground the experience in learning and answered their many questions. In her third-grade words, “it was super cool and we got to learn so many facts about him and other dinosaurs.”
Schroeder shared with the students the fossil’s fascinating story and helped ground the experience in learning. Why is Norm named Norm? Is Norm a boy or a girl? As their knowledge grew, their questions deepened. What was the first dinosaur we have on record? Which dinosaur had the most teeth? How big was a T. Rex head? What does a paleontologist do on a regular day? How are fossils at the Field Museum studied and what recent discoveries have been made? My daughter came home filled with excitement and shared with me so much dinosaur knowledge she had learned. From Sheridan, Norm went on tour, traveling to Cherokee and Everett elementary schools to give all students the experience they wouldn’t forget.
Norm’s visit was made possible through a Spirit of 67 Foundation Grant, thanks to Sheridan School librarian Jason Turow-Paul, who had learned about the opportunity to check out exhibits from the Field Museum’s Harris Learning Collection. “When I realized it was possible to bring in artifacts that align with our curriculum, I knew this was something worth pursuing,” Turow-Paul said. “One of my primary goals in the library is to extend classroom learning and inspire curiosity. These exhibits offer a powerful way to bring learning to life.”
Looking ahead, the 2026-2027 grants going into our schools cover Fine Arts, STEAM, Language Arts, SEL, Science, Social Studies, and more. These grants include visits by Playmakers’ Laboratory, Second City Improv, author Dori Hilestad Butler, and Mobile Ed’s Earth Dome, modular staging at Everett, genetic modeling kits, a Holocaust remembrance mural, an innovation station, STEM lab acoustic enhancements, a Boundless Adventures trip, and more. I know my daughter is most excited about the fourth-grade trip to Medieval Times!
These opportunities are only possible through the generosity and support of our very special Lake Forest community; district families, teachers and administrators, community members and so many volunteers. As a district parent and volunteer, thank you for continuing to support our children with these incredible experiences.
For more information or to help support the Spirit of 67, please visit
