Believe it or not, you are the most influential person in your child’s life. Sometimes it doesn’t feel that way, of course. Even so, in research study after research study, children and young adults report that they consult their parents before making any major decisions.

Before your son or daughter begins to earn the big bucks as an engineer, before graduating from college, before even selecting a college, he or she has to build math and science skills in elementary and middle school. Motivation and hard work are two keys to success. Opportunity, particularly for African American, Latino, and American Indian students, is another. Your support is vital to ensuring that your child gets the opportunity to succeed and makes the most of it.

Today’s students are aiming high: They want to succeed in their chosen careers and are increasingly selecting math- and science-based careers that might have seemed inaccessible to previous generations. Engineering, with its various disciplines, appeals to a wide variety of interests and skill sets. Use NACMEBacksMe.org to help your child make better career choices. Talk about the possibility of designing new products as an electrical engineer, of prolonging life through technology as a biomedical engineer, or of growing new crops as an agricultural engineer. Encourage your son or daughter to go for it—and look to NACME to back him or her all along the way.