When Star Elementary decided to go all-in on its Jurassic Park theme, Principal Smelker knew just who to call for a show-stopping centerpiece.
She reached out to Mr. Domke in the Career Technical Education (CTE) program, who connected her with the perfect person for the job: Maverik, a junior at the high school with both the skills and the passion to resurrect a full dino skeleton without having to do any digging!
Using the CNC expertise he’s gained in the CTE program, and his lifelong love of dinosaurs, Maverik designed and built a good-sized dinosaur skeleton replica that now proudly stands on display at Star Elementary.
Last week, Maverik unveiled his creation at the Dollars for Dinos Fundraiser kick-off assembly. As the skeleton was revealed, the gym erupted with cheers from the Star student body.
To create the dinosaur, Maverik used VCarve Pro software to map out the design, then fired up the high school’s ShopSabre CNC machine to carve each piece. But the journey wasn’t always smooth.
Along the way, Maverik faced his share of setbacks. In his first attempt, the pieces were not fitting the way they should. Slight disaster also struck when a model tumbled off a table and broke apart. But instead of giving up, Maverik kept going.
“We are so lucky that Maverik not only took the time to design it, but when it didn’t work at first, he didn’t stop,” Principal Smelker told students at the assembly. “He persisted. He persevered.”
Now, the Star Elementary community has one more exciting task ahead: giving their brand-new dino skeleton a name!