Ohio HS athletics runs across 6 OHSAA districts with 24+ sanctioned sports and unusually intense HS football culture in the major metros. Lightning for Schools is built for OHSAA athletic directors: FERPA-compliant student-data handling, 10 included coach seats plus low-cost extras that scale with multi-sport programs, and a recruiting portal integration that matches Ohio HS recruiting density.
Built for OHSAA
Governing Body
Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA)
Member-school eligibility rules, classification, and championship workflows shape what an athletic department needs from its software. Lightning for Schools is configured to support OHSAA-aligned workflows out of the box — not generic NFHS templates that don't map to your state's specifics. Reference:
www.ohsaa.org.
Compliant with FERPA + Ohio data protection standards
Student Data Privacy
FERPA + Ohio data protection standards
Student-athlete records in Ohio public schools are governed by FERPA and Ohio's breach-notification and data-security requirements. Vendors handling OH student-athlete data must meet FERPA's third-party handling requirements and demonstrate reasonable security practices. 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 Ohio athletic directors actually deal with
- OHSAA's "Competitive Balance" formula adjusts enrollment counts for private and open-enrollment schools — annual recalculations affect classification placement and require ongoing AD monitoring beyond simple enrollment count.
- Ohio HS football regional rivalries — particularly Massillon Washington vs Canton McKinley ("The Game," dating to 1894 and one of the most storied rivalries in HS football, with the 135th edition played in 2024) — are operationally significant events that drive programs' annual logistics on a scale most rivalry games don't.
- Cleveland-area Catholic football programs (St. Ignatius, St. Edward, Cleveland Heights, St. Vincent–St. Mary) compete in regional brackets that often shape Ohio HS football's national-recruiting tier — Catholic League operations parallel public-school OHSAA brackets.
- Greater Catholic League (GCL) in Cincinnati and Greater Miami Conference (GMC) operate as the two football-recruiting-density conferences in Ohio — programs in those conferences face different recruiting attention than typical OHSAA programs.
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 FERPA + Ohio data protection standards 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 Ohio
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:
Cincinnati metro
Cleveland metro
Columbus metro
Akron-Canton area
Dayton area
Toledo area
Talk to Christian directly
I'm the founder. Ohio 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.