What did you want to be when you grew up? For me it was either the first woman President or a scientist. I would always love to go to the science museums and pretend I was an inventor. I never thought that science was a “boy thing" until around middle school when I told everyone that I wanted to be a doctor. One of the moms in my friend group told my mom, “She cannot be a mom and a doctor." That put a doubt in my mind that has continued to today, but, truthfully, why can't a woman pursue a science career and not have a family as well?

When asked, seven out of ten young girls are interested in science. Why is it that only two out of ten girls end up pursuing a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) career?

This stigma against women in the STEM fields begins long before a girl is considering a college major, or even considering school at all. It begins on the playground. A young girl and boy are playing in the mud, “inventing something." The young girl is scolded at for making a mess and getting herself dirty, while the boy is encouraged to get messy and explore.

We need to support our young girls who are interested in STEM. Encourage them to explore growing, exciting fields like robotics and computer science, and don't force them to do only focus on “girl careers." Let little girls build machines out of Legos instead of forcing them to “play house" with Barbies.

Instead of being more concerned with girls “getting dirty," why not encourage them to discover what the world has to offer? It's time to change our perceptions of women and education. I can be a mother and a doctor. I plan on it.