BOARDMAN — When it comes to analyzing certain types of data and measuring time, Scott Lenhart’s students can feel free to leave their stopwatches at home.

“These connect to their computers. They’re wireless,” Lenhart, a Boardman Glenwood Junior High School eighth-grade science teacher, said.

He was referring to sophisticated pieces of ultimate physics sensor equipment that his students can use to collect live data as they perform a variety of scientific investigations and while adhering to the scientific method. More specifically, the 4-square inch devices and small vehicles can be used to measure temperatures, light and motion while allowing users to see and graph the data on their computers in real time, Lenhart explained.

A sense of gratitude also was in motion for Lenhart, because his classroom was one of 11 grant recipients for the 2024-25 school year from the Boardman Schools Fund for Educational Excellence, which hosted its 10th annual Reverse Raffle on Friday evening at Mr. Anthony’s Banquet Center.

The event that several hundred teachers, community leaders, administrators and others attended is the primary fundraiser for the BSFEE, which also is a Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley component fund.

“We are so excited that through these fundraising efforts over the years, we’ve granted more than $150,000 in classroom materials and equipment to give our Spartans experiences that go beyond what is provided by state and local funding,” Matthew H. Gambrel, the BSFEE’s president, said in a statement.

“Our raffle helped fund projects, including 3D printing equipment, sensory equipment including everything for a sensory path, two portable AEDs (automated external defibrillators), physics sensor bundles, cameras, art Wacom tablets, phonics and reading centers, and a mat cutter for high school art exhibition.”

In addition, Lenhart’s students will be able to not only collect and analyze important data, but will have the ability to make needed adjustments, conduct scientific trials and be further exposed to technology, he noted.

The BSFEE organization was founded in 2009 and today has 15 members — the superintendent, two teacher representatives from the district and a dozen citizens, Gambrel noted. In November, the BSFEE distributed more than $21,000 for this school year for the classrooms, he said.

“These projects give students opportunities they otherwise would not have in the classroom,” Gambrel said in his remarks Friday. “It helps the Boardman schools continue a tradition of excellence in education.”

Gambrel, who also is a Canfield-based attorney, was unable to say Sunday how much the reverse raffle generated because numbers were still being tallied.

Also during the event, he expressed gratitude to 11 past BSFEE board members, including Lenhart and former Superintendent Timothy Saxton, for their work in allowing the organization to grow and flourish.

Don Riccitelli, who served as the Reverse Raffle event’s master of ceremonies, noted that the BSFEE has grown yearly, and said he hoped Friday’s gathering would bring in $35,000 to $40,000 — money that would add to the organization’s fund.

Each year, 4% of the fund goes toward teacher grants for which they apply in early fall; the rest is used to continually build the fund, Riccitelli, who served on the BSFEE from 2014 to 2022, explained.

“The imagination the teachers put forth and what they want to do for the students makes the overall learning environment so much better,” he said.

Riccitelli also recalled the organization’s inaugural meeting in which he was a with coming up with a creative way to start the fundraising process. From there, “the Reverse Raffle was born,” he added.

BSFEE Awards

Boardman Schools Fund for Educational Excellence’s 11 grant recipients:

BOARDMAN HIGH SCHOOL

¯ A mat cutter for art students that will replace a 30-year-old nonfunctional one.

¯ Two Wacom tablets for digital-art students in grades nine to 12.

BOARDMAN GLENWOOD JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

¯ A camera and lens, printer and ink for journalism, multimedia, yearbook production and related school projects in the art department.

¯ Ultimate physics sensor equipment for students in the science department to collect live data.

¯ Two portable automated external defibrillator machines for the cross-country team.

¯ A 3D printer and supplies for the Technology and Boardman Makers Club.

BOARDMAN CENTER INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL

¯ Flexible seating, desks and book bins for students in the English language arts classroom.

¯ Sensory room equipment to allow students to manage sensory stimuli in a positive environment.

STADIUM DRIVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

¯ Instant Learning Center materials for kindergarten students to encourage hands-on learning in reading, science, phonics and language arts.

¯ Classroom equipment and teaching tools for students who need special education.

WEST BOULEVARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

¯ Sensory Path supplies to enhance sensory regulation for students in kindergarten through grade three.