Have you ever wondered why someone would decide to become a PE teacher? Second-year health and physical education teacher Kaitlyn Rowand said, “I thought it was important to be able to teach high school students the importance of all aspects of their health and to encourage them to make wise decisions about their health in the future.” 

Physical and mental health is just as important as an education in elementary, middle, and high school. Being able to perform any physical activity is a necessary life skill for adolscences to have. Adulthood comes with many responsibilities, such as family, work, and bills that can cause your health to deteriorate over time. We slowly start to forget about physical and mental health until it’s too late. “Physical education and health are important to me because they are the major factors in your life that help you live a long and healthful life. Decisions that you make today could affect you 10 years down the road if you are not mindful about the choices that you make,” said Rowand.

A good high school experience includes playing sports, hanging out with friends, and going to school dances. “I would say I had an average high school experience, I participated in sports and joined school clubs, but I only surrounded myself with a small group of friends. My favorite thing to do in high school was participating in an all-night volleyball tournament that was hosted by a senior for their class project and all the proceeds raised went to the organization of their choice,” said Rowand. 

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is all about surrounding yourself with positive energy like finding activities that make you happy. Rowand said, “My favorite thing to do outside of school would be spending time with my husband and son or coaching the high school cheerleading team.” It also comes down to who you surround yourself with on a daily basis, “I would say my work best friend would be Mr. (Zachary) Mansfield or Mrs. (Lauren) Craig, we are constantly collaborating on how to improve our teaching techniques to better our classes.” 

A trusting relationship with your coworks and students is necessary to be a good teacher. Freshman Chloe Martin-Vose describes her relationship with Rowand by saying, “I like her. She’s a good teacher and is pretty understanding about most things. My favorite thing about Mrs. Rowand is that she is very helpful when it comes to health and she is also very understanding about gym.”