programs, curriculum, and athletic equipment for 134,000 students. “Health is so huge that there is never enough time to teach all of it,” she says. To stay on top of essential information, Mrs. Creighton says, she depends on many national and local experts for guidance. Her resources include the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Teaching kids to become fit and healthy isn’t the only benefit of the programs she guides, Mrs. Creighton says. “There’s learning sportsmanship, teamwork, problem-solving—all those skills that you will use no matter what you do with your life,” she says. “If we don’t have those skills, then [life] becomes a struggle.” A career in health and PE was a natural fit for Mrs. Creighton. “When I was growing up, I was very active,” she says. “My family was very active and I grew up with five brothers who were very athletic, so I followed in their footsteps.” As a girl, Mrs. Creighton regularly bicycled and rode horses. She also played a lot of sports in middle school and high school, including bas- ketball, softball, field hockey, and cheerleading. Today she still is active, dancing and practicing yoga. She even has a special desk at work so Bettyann Creighton Teaching fitness and lessons for life 12 Physical education class isn’t what it used to be. And that’s a good thing, says Bettyann Creighton. When she started her career as a PE teacher in Philadelphia, gym class meant playing “sport after sport after sport.” That old approach was fine for students who were gifted athletes, but it didn’t inspire those whose talents lay elsewhere, she says. Today the goal in PE is for kids to become fit. Mrs. Creighton says students are exposed to a broad range of activities that they can pursue for the rest of their lives—from dance and yoga to circuit training and archery. “PE is for everyone,” she says. It “isn’t just for the people who are sports stars.” Mrs. Creighton has a big part in shaping what thousands of kids learn each year about health and wellness. She is in charge of all the health, safety, and physical education programs for the School District of Philadelphia. In that role, she seeks to provide the most up-to-date