BOARDMAN — The Boardman Schools Foundation for Educational Excellence and a larger-than-normal group of Boardman teachers gathered Thursday as the teacher mini-grants for the current school year were announced.

It is a record-setting year, according to BSFEE President Lynda Beichner.

“It is a big milestone,” she said. “We have exceeded $100,000 in mini-grants since the program began. We are close to $105,000. It was really exciting to total it up.”

The foundation was formed in 2009 as a vehicle to seek donations from the community, hold fundraisers and provide teachers with the ability to purchase programs, materials and equipment to enhance students’ education. One of the events the foundation hosts is a reverse raffle. Other funds come from donations.

At Thursday’s event, two big donations were highlighted. One was from the Boardman Education Association, which represents teachers in the district. The BEA has donated $2,000 each year for the past nine years. This year’s donation hit the $20,000 mark since the association started donating.

The second big donation for $5,000 came from the Aimee and Lulu Seidel Foundation. Presenting the check was attorney Tom Sanborn as a representative of the foundation.

The other milestone is in the grants.

This year saw 19 projects being funded for a total of $36,417.16. Of that amount, the BSFEE grants totaled $18,463.85. Grants awarded through district funding came in at $5,897 and the balance of $12,056.31 came through grants applied for by the Boardman Office of Instruction.

“This year’s BSFEE funds ($18,463.35) funded 11 projects,” Beichner said. “We had another eight projects funded through the district’s extra funding (channels).”

That’s 19 projects and tons of materials, equipment, instruments and technology that teachers would have otherwise not had access to were it not for the BSFEE and the teacher mini-grant programs, officials noted.

“Our students will reap the benefits of this program,” Beichner said.

Among one of the BSFEE-funded projects is a joint project between the Boardman High School Environmental Science Department and the BHS Industrial Arts classes. Those two entities were approved for $1,750 to purchase materials for a storage shed to be used on campus for recycling. The project was proposed by teachers Amanda Rigby and Marvin Aeschbacher.

“The BHS Industrial Arts students will build it,” Aeschbacher said. “Then it will be used on campus for the recycling program.”

Another big build is a project to bring a greenhouse to Boardman Glenwood Junior High School. The project was submitted by Laura Frost, Eric Deifenderfer and Scott Lenhart and received $4,049.99 in BSFEE funds.

“It will really enhance our curriculum at BGJHS,” Lenhart said.

FOUNDATION FUNDING

Other BSFEE-only projects funded are:

• Equipment for a four-student, independent work area with two desks, four chairs, and four iPads with stands and a power strip as a special education resource at Boardman Center Intermediate School. The grant was for $771.97, and the project was submitted by Lisa Macciomei;

• Multiple tools, various cards and a social skills kit for social and emotional learning at BCIS. The project was for $1,579.81 and was submitted by Michael Masucci;

• At West Boulevard Elementary, a grant for $1,369.93 was received for emotional learning educator kits. The project was submitted by Katie Paulini, Amanda Scrocco and Jessica O’Halloran;

• West Boulevard also received $1,265.63 for materials to support student-led learning centers with items such as puzzles, flashcards, games and more, and Robinwood Elementary received $1,748.56 for the same. The project was submitted by Krista Schmied from West and Candace Wright from Robinwood;

• Holly Watts of Robinwood was awarded $1,677.47 for materials geared toward phonics and literacy skills. The project includes flash cards, magnets, phonics activities and flexible seating;

• At BGJHS, a grant of $1,699.04 was awarded for sensory room materials including lighting, storage, seating, decor and interactive tools. The project was submitted by Courtney Abruzzino and Barb Fonderlin.

OFFICE OF INSTRUCTION

The projects funded through the Office of Instruction grants are:

• At BCIS, the music program received $5,055 for the purchase of seven “red label” violins, one cello and a Yamaha electric bass guitar, all with cases. The project was submitted by Bill Amendol, Michele Prokop and Christine Carucci;

• More instruments were approved in a $1,600 grant to purchase two euphoniums and a trombone for the BCIS / BGJHS arts / music program. The project was submitted by Timothy Tuite;

• At BHS, a $1,200 grant was given for the purchase of six to eight sets of books for the literary circles program. The project was submitted by Jenefer Basista;

• The technology department at BCIS was awarded $1,750 for engineering design process materials including 128 clay sets, 10 clay tool kits, and 3D printer filament. The project was submitted by Carrie Hurd and Paula Ritter;

• A grant of $1,098 was given to the English department at BHS for the purchase of the New York Times Upfront Magazine for high school students (both print and digital copies). That project was submitted by Dana Safarek.

DISTRICT FUNDING

Projects funded through the district funding awards are:

• The BHS Journalism / Media Department was awarded $1,500 for three wireless camera replacement systems for the BSTN (Boardman Schools Television Network) as submitted by Joseph Hollabaugh;

• Danielle Siembida and Chuck Schiffhauer from BGJHS were awarded $2,700 to purchase 30 heart rate monitors with charging and storage cases for the physical education department;

• Also at BGJHS, up to $1,697 was awarded for the purchase of equipment (camcorder, microphone, and studio lighting) that will help in presenting the morning announcements by the student TV crew. The project was submitted by Chelsea Wisbar.

COMBINED FUNDING

A few projects saw funding from both the BSFEE and the Office of Instruction. These are:

• Materials for in-classroom flexible seating tables and seats, and five to seven book sets for the English department at BHS. The grant award was for $1,060 in BSFEE funds and $310 in Office of Instruction funds. The project was submitted by Molly Piper;

• At BCIS, Amber Collins was awarded $934.48 in BSFEE funds and $422.89 from the Office of Instruction for materials for an in-class library, including books, bins, wiggle chairs and balance balls;

• The final project, also at BCIS, was for materials for an in-class library submitted by Marta Evans.