eLearning - How Lake Forest High School Makes it Work

As teachers and students adjust to a new normal of working and studying at home, a few keys to success have become clear. Robust technology platforms are king, and the high school teachers’ facility with them has sparked creative solutions and new ways to inspire their students and monitor their progress. Much of this technology was granted by the Lake Forest High School Foundation in recent years, as a result of generous donations from the community.

As LFHS Principal, Dr. Chala Holland, has said, “The Foundation has been a true partner with us in creating a dynamic learning environment. Walk the halls and you can see, feel, and hear the impact the Foundation has had on our students. The Foundation’s support is pivotal in everything we are doing.”

This week the LFHS Foundation will hold its annual fundraising event which, like the classroom, will be “virtual” for the first time, making it possible for the Foundation to continue investing in educational excellence. Featuring motivational speaker T. Anne Pierce, raffle prizes and a silent auction, the online event is free and open to the public. Bidding in the silent auction is open now at http://www.lfhsfoundation.org/virtual-event.html.

Foundation grants support, enrich and enhance the Lake Forest High School experience for all students, faculty, and staff. Here is a look at how the LFHS Foundation grants to support, enrich and enhance the LFHS experience has made it possible for students to “e-learn” at home, in the face of Covid-19.

WeVideo – creating digital lessons

“Science, English and Social Studies teachers have become power users of WeVideo, powerful software that allows teachers to videotape themselves speaking to students and import archival footage of the places and topics they are studying – from ancient Rome to 21st-century rocketry. During the eLearning experience, teachers use WeVideo for screencasts, content delivery, and digital lessons. In essence, they are facilitating learning using a “flipped classroom” model where students have digital archives to access at their leisure.” Jimmy Juliano, Educational Technology

GimKit – practicing world languages

This grant from 2019 allows the entire World Language department to track student practice on vocabulary, grammatical structures and more with a game-based learning tool called GimKit. Developed by a high school student, Gimkit gives students positive reinforcement for completing the critical practice they need.

Albert Online – preparing for AP tests in spring

Albert is a web-based interactive database of multiple-choice questions to help prepare students for the coming AP tests. These test results are submitted to colleges and allow many students to take more advanced courses their first year in college. Albert helps teachers create question sets based on individual student needs, showing student progress and giving real-time feedback. For remote learning, students are using the Albert program for a number of classes. These include AP Government, AP World History, AP European History, and AP Psychology. Students receive practice and instruction on addressing these questions, as well as the content/skills needed for success on the AP tests.

The Forest Scout student newspaper-- Website Conversion

The Forest Scout student newspaper, written and edited by LFHS journalism students, is still publishing every day! In 2014, English teacher Austin Scott had a vision to expand and enhance the curricular experience of the journalism program. He believed that The Forest Scout newspaper was “a tangible representation of the hard work and commitment that students of LFHS have both to the craft of writing and the spirit of their community.” But the program needed resources to become what we see today. To help make the vision a reality, Mr. Scott requested grant funds from the LFHS Foundation. The Foundation provided 10 high-resolution monitors and two digital cameras to allow the students to work more professionally in creating the online newspaper. Working with Journalism teacher Glen Leyden, in 2019 the Foundation funded a full conversion to the newspaper’s new website. Today, there are 48 students involved in bringing The Forest Scout to life, with growing enrollment each year.

Business Incubator – Student Start-ups/Mentoring continues

Incredibly, 100 local business leaders have served as mentors and coaches for the Foundation-supported Business Incubator program at LFHS since its establishment with an initial grant in 2014. This program has grown in popularity and the LFHS Foundation continues to be actively involved soliciting mentors, coaches and judges, helping manage the logistics of the Most Viable Product and Academic Pitch weeks, hosting Pitch Night, and providing MVP funding through a standing grant. Mentors from the community are still meeting weekly via Google Meet with each of their student groups, guiding them toward completion of their business plans for new products and services. The annual Pitch Night competition is in May.

Each year the Foundation asks the Lake Forest and Lake Bluff communities to support LFHS through donations and special events like the Spring Luncheon and Pitch Night.

Thanks to the generosity of our community over the last 18 years, the LFHS Foundation has provided 300 grants, awarding more than $2.5 million in funding. Visit its website at lfhsfoundation.org to learn more.