Florida HS athletics combines fast-growing public-school programs, a deep private and charter ecosystem, and unusually high recruiting attention in major sports. Lightning for Schools is built for FHSAA athletic directors — 10 included coach seats plus low-cost extras, Florida student-privacy compliance, and a recruiting portal integration that fits the reality of Florida HS recruiting volume.
Built for FHSAA
Governing Body
Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA)
Member-school eligibility rules, classification, and championship workflows shape what an athletic department needs from its software. Lightning for Schools is configured to support FHSAA-aligned workflows out of the box — not generic NFHS templates that don't map to your state's specifics. Reference:
www.fhsaa.org.
Compliant with Florida Education Code §1002.222 (Student Privacy)
Student Data Privacy
Florida Education Code §1002.222 (Student Privacy)
Florida Education Code §1002.222 governs the collection and protection of student personally identifiable information, including by third-party education vendors. Platforms handling FHSAA-aligned student-athlete data must comply. Lightning's data-handling practices are built to meet these requirements; a vendor that can't speak to your state's privacy framework should not be on your shortlist.
What Florida athletic directors actually deal with
- IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) is a major Florida-based independent athletic program that does NOT participate in FHSAA — many top FL recruits leave the public/private FHSAA system entirely to attend IMG. FHSAA programs operate alongside this parallel system that drains some top talent.
- FHSAA football recruiting density in South Florida (Miami Northwestern, Booker T. Washington, Carol City, Miami Central, St. Thomas Aquinas, Chaminade-Madonna) operates at national-recruiting tier — programs produce more annual D1 signees than entire states elsewhere.
- FHSAA ended its Metro/Suburban classification split in 2022, replacing it with 7 classifications plus a Rural category — ongoing realignment cycles (the 2026–28 cycle is consolidating Rural into 1A) keep classification placement under continuous review.
- Florida's HS spring football practice rules (limited but permitted under FHSAA bylaws) differ from many states' "no spring practice" rules and require specific scheduling coordination for ADs.
What Lightning for Schools includes
10 coach seats included
Flat $150/yr base includes 10 full coach seats. Need more for a big multi-sport department? Add extra seats anytime at 50% of the coach-tier price.
Roster + eligibility
Per-sport, per-season roster management with eligibility tracking, transfer documentation, and out-of-season practice limits.
Recruiting portal integration
Your student-athletes' Lightning profiles roll into a searchable college-coach portal — recruiting attention without leaving the AD platform.
DPA-compliant data handling
Aligned with Florida Education Code §1002.222 (Student Privacy) requirements. Documentation available for your district's procurement review.
Stat verification
Coach Verified and Tournament Verified stats flow into the recruiting layer automatically. Reduces manual roster-update workload for AD staff.
Multi-season scheduling
Fall / winter / spring sport scheduling in one tool — facility allocation, transportation requests, official assignments.
Built for athletic departments across Florida
We're looking for our first partner departments in the state. If you're an AD in one of these areas and want to talk through a pilot:
Miami-Dade
Broward County
Orange County (Orlando)
Hillsborough County (Tampa)
Palm Beach County
Duval County (Jacksonville)
Talk to Christian directly
I'm the founder. Florida athletic directors who want to talk through a pilot or just get specific questions answered can reach me directly: [email protected] or (443) 996-6563.