Warren County school to attend Starved Rock State Park thanks to grant

United West Elementary kindergarten students from Monmouth will be awarded $785 to visit Starved Rock State Park for a field trip.

More than 7,000 students will visit Illinois state parks, natural areas, museums and other natural resources sites this year to learn about nature and conservation thanks to grant funding through the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources announced more than $99,600 funding was awarded for 113 student field trip grants. Grant recipients represent 32 counties in the state.

The grants are made possible by private donations from the Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Foundation of Skokie and the D.F. and M.T. Grohne Family Foundation of Wilmington. The donations and funding for the grants are coordinated by the Illinois Conservation Foundation.

United West is the only school attending Starved Rock or Matthiessen state parks in 2025 through this program.

Since its inception in 2001, the grant program has distributed more than $1.6 million, and more than 140,000 students have been provided the opportunity to take part in a field trip. Grant recipients are located throughout Illinois and represent students from pre-kindergarten through high school.

The competitive grant program allows Illinois teachers to apply for funds to take students on field trips to study Illinois’ natural resources. Learning activities must directly relate to the school’s curriculum. The annual application deadline is Jan. 31. The grant application form is available online. Funding administered by ICF covers expenses such as transportation costs and substitute teachers.

For more information about the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program, contact the IDNR division of education at dnr.teachkids@illinois.gov. ICF accepts donations for the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program.