NATCHEZ — Helping people, especially to do the things that most take for granted, is what excites Adams County Christian School 2011 valedictorian Brittany Scroggins about her career goal.

Whether she is helping those with special needs or the elderly, Scroggins said the variety of people she will work with attracted her to physical therapy.

In addition, Scroggins said the human body has always grabbed her interest.

“I love learning about the body, and seeing how the body works,” she said.

Scroggins, who earned a 3.94 GPA as her high school average, said science — especially anatomy — was her favorite subject in high school.

Scroggins enjoys working with disabled people, she said, partly because most people with special needs she meets have great attitudes while overcoming daily struggles.

“They are happy no matter what,” Scroggins said of disabled people with whom she has worked. “It puts a smile on my face.”

Helping others cope with daily tasks also reminds her of how fortunate most people are.

“It’s amazing how much we take for granted,” Scroggins said.

Scroggins, who said she has wanted become a physical therapist for a couple of years, got her first taste of the career lifestyle Wednesday.

She shadowed the staff at Natchez Rehab and Specialty Services to learn more about the field and double-check her interest in the career.

“It was my first day, and I loved it,” she said.

Before she takes on patients of her own in Natchez after physical therapy school, Scroggins said she plans to attend Copiah-Lincoln Community College in the fall where she will study biology.

After earning her associates degree at Co-Lin, Scroggins said she would like to study Kinesiology — the study of human movement — at either Mississippi College in Clinton or the University of Mississippi before applying to physical thereapy school.

Scroggins said studying for tests as soon as she got her hands on the material and the desire for an impressive report card helped her graduate first in the ACCS class of 2011.

But her study habits, will power and focus came directly from two sources: her parents and from God, she said.

“I would not be where I am right now if it wasn’t for those two,” Scroggins said.

Scroggins is the daughter of Mitch and Natalie Scroggins.