Boardman schools end year with multiple awards

By Denise Dick

denise_dick@vindy.com

BOARDMAN

This week ended another year for Boardman schools, one punctuated by accolades and recognitions from across Ohio and the United States.

The Boardman Local School District and its individual schools racked up a slew of awards for academic achievement, music education, college readiness and student growth.

Superintendent Frank Lazzeri touts the district’s strong and diverse academic offerings, including nine Advanced Placement classes available at the high school. But he said it’s more than that.

“We’re committed to the three A’s: academics, the arts and athletics,” he said.

Boardman athletics have always maintained a loyal following, and the district prides itself on the number and quality of its academics.

“Ninety percent of our students go on to college with a very low remediation rate,” Lazzeri said.

At a time when many school districts are slashing music and art programs, though, Boardman clings to its programs, believing the arts make up an integral part of education.

“We feel the arts create a well-rounded person,” the superintendent said. “It gives a different perspective, a different viewpoint.”

This year, the National Association of Music Merchants named Boardman one of its Best Communities for Music Education in the United States.

The state school board gave the district a “Momentum Award” for earning straight A’s on all Value-Added measures on the report card.

The high school earned a Silver Medal on U.S. News and World Report’s Best High Schools list,

Robinwood Lane and West Boulevard elementary schools earned recognition from the state as High Performing Schools of Honor for maintaining high student achievement, even among economically disadvantaged students. Robinwood Lane also has been nominated for the U.S. Department of Education’s Blue Ribbon Award for overall academic excellence. West Boulevard previously earned that distinction.

Awards do make a difference, said Lazzeri and Cindy Fernback, high-school principal.

It allows the public to know that the schools are doing their jobs, he said.

It’s also provides teachers with more immediate evidence of their good work, Fernback said.

“Teachers get to see the fruits of their labor,” she said, adding that’s something teachers don’t generally see in the short term.

Lazzeri points to staff for the district’s successes.

“Every year, we come together as a team and focus on what we need to do for the achievement of all students,” he said. “We do that by constantly raising the bar and not being satisfied with the status quo or past achievements.”

The school board also supports those efforts, Lazzeri said.

Boardman students can take up to four years of art and have the opportunity to earn college credit through an AP art course. The district offers a robust music program in both chorale and instrumental including an orchestra, jazz band and rock group.

Other courses such as industrial arts and television production enable students to learn and hone those crafts.

Marvin Aeschbacher teaches the high schools’ woods course, which includes four levels.

One student crafted an outdoor table with attached seats and opened it up for bidding among faculty, he said. The student, Nicole Zimmerman, plans to use the $400 to help pay for college.

Such courses aren’t part of the core curriculum, but Fernback believes they meet a need.

“That one class might be the reason that student comes to school,” she said.

With some students, getting them in the door is more than half the battle, the principal said, and they can’t learn if they aren’t in school.

In keeping with its goal of matriculating well-rounded students, the high school added an Emerging Leaders program a few years ago.

The club exposes students to area business leaders and includes a community service element. Through that program, the school formed a relationship with Greenbriar Assisted Living Center.

“The center brings residents to the school for lunch,” Fernback said. “They sit in the cafeteria for lunch and eat with the students.”

It’s a hit among students and center residents, she said.