Health and P.E. teacher Heather Sutphin recently became our school’s new Assistant Director of Student Activities. Taking on a new role, Sutphin is simultaneously tackling student, staff and coach inquiries. In fact, her responsibilities make for a lengthy list.

Sutphin has been with APS for 14 years. She will still maintain her former position as a Yorktown Health and P.E. teacher in addition to one period dedicated to planning and managing Senior Experience. Before her time at Yorktown, Sutphin taught Health and P.E. at Williamsburg Middle School for nine years. Additionally, she has been the head coach of our school’s softball team for 14 years. In years past, she has also coached basketball and volleyball.

Sutphin’s new obligations mean she is receiving emails from just about every staff member at Yorktown. She leads various student activities, from directing graduation and senior experience to approving student’s requests to start new clubs.

She also helps manage requests from staff. Sutphin books field trips, organizes buses and schedules sports practices and events. She also leads coaches’ education in sports — ensuring all coaches have a CPR certification and concussion training and other requirements — as well as submitting them to VHSL.

Sutphin now transitions from solely helping students to now helping other staff as well.

“As a teacher, students need you a lot …. [Students] ask questions about grades or make ups, but now staff members need you and have questions about how to do a field trip, when they can get buses, and coaches need you to schedule games. So the time commitment is a lot of work,” Sutphin said.

However, the fresh set of responsibilities comes with new opportunities. These are exactly what Sutphin is most excited for.

“I was excited to be offered the position after coaching here so long and teaching here for a couple years …. I think it’s nice to have a challenge and a new role and it’s a new step towards becoming a leader in Arlington,” Sutphin said.

It would appear that Sutphin’s long standing coaching role and commitment to APS has started to pay off. Sutphin is well on her way to being a leader in our school’s community, and we are lucky to have her here at Yorktown.