Welcoming Belinda and Mitch Hanlon from Hanlon Consulting as our latest Brand Ambassadors! they are located in Tamworth, NSW, Australia.

First up- Mitch Hanlon

Position – Managing Director

Where did you study? University of NSW Sydney

What are the requirements to be a Registered Land Surveyor in our area?  Surveying Degree (1986 graduated) and competency certificate from the Board of Surveying and Spatial Information (1989).  I now enjoy mentoring our Graduate Surveyors who are on the road to registration with their 5 competency assessments (equivalent to a Masters Degree).

How did you get into Surveying?  Year 10 work experience with the local surveyor in Young NSW (Regional Australia)

Introducing – Belinda Hanlon

Position: Marketing and Business Development for Hanlons Consulting

How long have I been associated with the Surveying Industry: Since 2003 (when I met my husband)

How long have you been in the industry? On and off since 2003

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention? ACS – (Consulting Surveyors NSW)

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? As a regional surveying and engineering practice, we remain passionate about developing the potential of regional youth and creating career pathways without having to leave the regions.  We also want to empower our economic pillars to seemingly create economic opportunities.  After all – we all want to see our children have fulfilling and well paid careers and career pathways without having to relocate away from family and friend networks.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? Most kids are aware of the more well known vocations eg: Teaching/Medicine etc through their own lived experience.  Because Surveying is a sometimes hidden profession, we have to make an extra effort to explain the why and the how of Surveying.  This means networking with school careers advisors and heads of STEM departments, attending careers expos and speaking to students and taking up media opportunities to promote the profession.  Also working with the ACS Team to bring Maths in Surveying/Diversity in Surveying to regional areas to increase awareness.

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? As much as possible to help further educate on what Surveying as a career offers.

What are your hobbies? Photography, walking, cooking, travelling

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be?  Female Super Surveyor  OR a Unicorn – as Surveyors wear many hats!

What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? More stories on diversity in Surveying – helping increase females in our industry

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in?  Surveying is so diverse.  Maths focused but not overly demanding.  A great mix of office and field.  Integral to every project from feasibility through to planning approval and handover.  Worldwide opportunities and Australian qualifications are highly respected worldwide.  Looking for a great career – think about Surveying!

Welcoming our latest Brand Ambassador Paddy Jordan from North Carolina, USA:

Where did you study? Wake Technical Community College, Raleigh, NC

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area?

To be eligible for the PLS license in North Carolina, the applicant must: https://www.ncbels.org/applications/professional-land-surveyor/

• Satisfy the education requirements per G. S. 89C-13.
• Pass the FS and PS exams.
• Satisfy the experience requirements per G. S. 89C-13 and present evidence satisfactory to the Board of a specific record of progressive surveying experience after the date of graduation that is of a grade and character that indicates to the Board that the applicant is competent to practice surveying.
• Submit an acceptable map.
  • Maps should be a simple black and white 18” x 24” single page plat.
  • All maps must be from actual surveys and comply with the North Carolina Standards of Practice for Land Surveying (Board Rules). It must also comply with G. S. 47-30 (Mapping Requirements for Recordable Maps). For your reference, there is a sample map on the Board’s web site (Sample Map).
  • All maps must contain a statement that the fieldwork, calculations and drawing was done by the applicant.
    • The applicant’s name must be identified in the statement and signed by a Professional Land Surveyor.
  • If after Board review the map needs to be revised, the applicant should cloud, describe and date the revisions.
• Pass the North Carolina State Specific Exam. The state exam tests an applicant’s knowledge of the laws, procedures and practices pertaining to land surveying in North Carolina, which includes testing what a PLS can do per G. S. 89C and the incidental drainage guidelines with respect to erosion control and surface drainage. This is an open book exam administered at the Board office. Applicants may bring bound reference materials and a calculator as approved by NCEES (Approved Calculators).

How did you get into surveying? Discovered it by accident, wanted to be an architect because I enjoyed drafting.  Found civil engineering and surveying after I graduated high school and was looking into other careers.

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? I went to college for surveying and civil engineering, but I am currently working as a roadway designer for Mott MacDonald.

How long have you been in the industry? Over 27 years.

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention?

Future City Competition – https://futurecity.org/what-is-future-city/ 

Future City is a project-based learning program where students in 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades imagine, research, design, and build cities of the future.  

Transportation YOU – https://www.wtsinternational.org/mission/wts-foundation/transportation-you 

The mission of the Transportation YOU program is to develop the next generation of the transportation industry by growing the involvement and interest of girls and young women in STEM studies and more.

NCLUG – North Carolina Local User Group (Bentley Systems) – https://nclug.com/ 

We host software and other training to industry professionals, but we also do outreach activities like training for colleges and toy for tots drives.

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? Love what GKiS is doing to reach the younger generations. I see a decline of candidates in the industry and want to do my part help the next generation find meaningful work and a great career.  

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? These are great careers which will have a profound impact on our future. It is important that kids are introduced to the knowledge that these careers existing, so they can explore options to find something they enjoy.  Even if a kid does not like the field, at least they will know what it is and have a greater understanding of the surveying and geospatial world.

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? I plan to share the GKiS website and material with teachers and students whenever I get the opportunity.  I also plan to encourage my colleagues to share the material and be active within the community.  I will also promote business to join the GKiS team to help grow the program.

What are your hobbies? I like boating at the lake and home improvement projects around the house, plus looking after my grandkids.

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be?

A girl drafting at the computer, printing plans digitally, or leading a board meeting. 

A girl teaching a training class to professionals or presenting their career at a school.

What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? Maybe some short videos talking about career field opportunities and statistics like what kind of schooling is needed for the job.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? Be sure to reach out to professional organizations like Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Transportation YOU program to request for industry professional to come visit your school to talk about their career.  Also there are a lot of other STEM programs that closely align with surveyors that everyone can research for ideas for classrooms activities and presenters. Please reach out if you need help.

Welcoming Angela Bailey a Brand Ambassador from Florida, USA!

“I have recently presented at Troy Universities’ Geo Day 2023, which brings several of the local high schools to the University to learn about the Surveying a Mapping profession and the career opportunities to stem from it.  I attended Northwest Florida’s Construction Career Days in 2022, which allows for over 1000 high school students to learn about related trades and provides scholarship opportunities as well.  I will also attend Construction Career Days again this year, 2023, and hold a learning lab interactively showing surveying scanning platforms.  Being from Pensacola, I also frequent the University of West Florida’s Environmental programs, soon-to-be graduates, about surveying, remote sensing, and GIS internships and career paths in the surveying profession.”

Where did you study? I graduated Tallahassee Community College with an Associates in Science, Geographic Information System and finished my Bachelors at the University of West Florida in Environmental Science.

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? In Florida, you must have a 4 year degree from an ABET accredited Surveying and Mapping program along with 4 years of experience as a subordinate to ta Licensed Professional Surveyor and Mapper and be in responsible charge or a obtain a 4 year Science related degree plus 25 semester hours in surveying related coursework with which you must also have at least 6 years of experience as a subordinate to ta Licensed Professional Surveyor and Mapper and 5 of those years you must be in responsible charge. You also must pass the National exams in Fundamentals of surveying and Principles and Practice of Surveying and the Florida Jurisdictional exam.

How did you get into surveying? I was in college for Graphic Design and needed an internship to finish out my program. I had called almost fifty companies related to graphics or design or architects or ANYONE who could give me some experience with Computer Aided Design software (CAD). Then I came across a Survey company that was willing to take me on and show me some stuff in CAD. It was all survey stuff of course. After that, I was hooked. I quit my job and changed my career course and got an entry level job at a survey company.

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? I love the natural sciences and would either venture into oceanography or wetland sciences.

How long have you been in the industry? I have been in the industry for about 20 years.

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention?

Florida Surveying and Mapping Society (FSMS) Member and Panhandle Chapter Officer

American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) Member

Women in Transportation (WTS) Member

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I have love for kids and pride in my profession. I want to see both succeed and grow! There is such a lack of awareness of the Surveying profession. It boggles my mind that so many young and adults have little to no knowledge of one of our oldest professions. How can we teach and pass down our tricks of the trade when so many are unaware that we exist. Kids are missing out on opportunities within and related to this field of study and that falls on us so it’s time we teach what we know and hand down our profession to the next generations.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? For any profession to continue and evolve, there needs to be awareness of it. How will our youth be able to utilize and integrate surveying with our growing technologies if we never introduce them to it?

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? Get into local schools and organizations like 4-H. I have had to create my own content and material in the past. That is time-consuming and may not captivate the students in a way GKIS has been able to accomplish. GKIS resources make it so much easier for me to focus on interaction with the kids, and they love the posters, coloring pages, and comics. It also gives me stronger backing (credibility) to access the schools and functions. They see I am part of a larger community inspiring and educating our kids about the geospatial industry.

What are your hobbies? Like most surveyors, I like to be outdoors. Camping, fishing, hiking, swimming, and canoeing, you name it. If it is outside and adventurous, count me in!

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? An Eagle to represent remote sensing.

What poster or resource would you like to see next from GKiS? The evolution of surveying, using old school methods including using Polaris and lead up to the high-tech equipment we have today.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? I haven’t met ANY teachers that have been introduced to GKIS. They are always looking for resources to aid them in teaching about maps and surveying. Somehow, we need to educate teachers that GKIS exists and to use it! I think it’s on the ambassadors and anyone in this profession that knows about GKIS to let the teachers know and point them in the right direction to obtain knowledge about GKIS.

Introducing Chris Preston from Surrey, UK:

Where did you study? Bedford College (University of London) and University College (UCL).

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? Anyone can set up as a surveyor in the UK.

How did you get into surveying? I was introduced to Surveying while studying for a BSc (Hons) Geography and did a Post Graduate Diploma in Land Surveying.

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? Railway Civil Engineer or Project manager.

How long have you been in the industry? 46 years

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention?

Fellow of Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Fellow of Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors.

Member of Permanent Way Institution.

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I want to enthuse and show learners, who may not understand the huge variety of work that surveyors do especially in the geospatial field. Show them that it is not a dull profession and use all sorts of new tech kit.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? It is an industry that does not immediately come to mind when thinking of careers as many have not heard of it. Most people use Google Maps on their phones but do not know where that information comes from. We need more entrants into the industry to replace the “baby boomer” generation who are retiring like me!

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? Hopefully schools visits as I was an HS2 Education ambassador in a previous role and am currently signing up to be a STEM ambassador. This last role overlaps nicely with GKiS.

What are your hobbies? My hobbies are mostly related to sports and outdoor pursuits. I watch football at Crystal Palace and Cricket at Lords. I own a Motor home and enjoy visiting beautiful countryside and coastline in my spare time. I am also a practicing Christian at a local Church of England church.

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? An Eagle dressed in red and blue stripes and or orange HiVi working hard behind a surveying instrument.

What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? I have not yet had the opportunity to review the resources available but probably more varied lesson plans that can be adapted to different age groups and audiences.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? Knowing that surveyors also work in the film industry.

Introducing our latest Brand Ambassador Joel van Cranenbroeck from Namur, Belgium!

Where did you study? I studied in Brussels at the State Technical Institute for Land Surveyor over 3 years. Before I studied Math Sup.

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? Several possibilities : High Schools for a MSc degree in Construction Engineering with Surveyor’s option (last year), University as MSc in Geomatics, Surveying option and still Graduation Schools. To become a Surveyor, you need to complete that study, then take an oath before the Court of First Instance and to be registered at the Conseil Fédéral des Géomètres-Experts. That concerns mostly the traditional land surveyors involved in boundary delimitations and cadastral surveys. We don’t have any cursus for becoming survey engineer or geodesist here in Belgium. Professor PL Baetslé at that time answered that question (how to become a geodesist in Belgium) with a laconic “by accident”.

How did you get into surveying? At the end of my secondary school studies I followed for several days as a helper, a land surveyor. It has been the trigger ! And I decided to become a surveyor for working outdoors, handling instruments and to report surveys on maps.  I also joined as a guest the celebration of a land surveyor’s union (something like 150th anniversary) in Brussels and people there were looking like adventurers, speaking loudly about great projects, Africa etc … Looks like “become a surveyor and see the world” or “surveying is not a job, it’s an adventure”

How long have you been in the industry? 40 years

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention? I have been past vice chairman for the FIG Commission 6 Surveying Engineering, WG 6.2 and I am actually member of the French speaking Association of Surveyors (AFT) and member of the regional land surveyors union (UGEC).

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? To share my passion for surveying and geodesy with kids … something I thought since a while knowing the lack of interest nowadays for our profession … worldwide. 

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? They are our future, they are the next generation ! Knowing that many surveyors I know have decided for that profession because they met at that age other surveyors. I think examples are speaking for themselves and actually there is no promotion at school so how young people/students would like to be interested in surveying ?

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? I will start by meeting kids at school and showing them what is surveying at first simply by mapping their spaces with traditional instruments and then raise their interest and curiosity with advanced techniques.

What are your hobbies? Pottery (throwing clay on the wheel), watercolor painting and sketching, baking breads and cooking, playing 12 strings guitar, discovering new areas and new friends, astronomy and driving my LD Defender and my Vespa GTS125 in the countryside between many other things ! 

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? Our company is CGEOS standing for Creative Geosensing … Geosensing is the contraction of Geodesy and (remote) sensing  and we do oru business with creativity. That’s also what our customers appreciate working with us as we are always bringing to them quite unique solutions. So the GKiS character would be for us a “creator” an “artist” handling pencils of all colors 🙂

What resources would you like to see next from GKiS? Anything will be welcomed and at first docs for explaining at schools who we are and what we do ! 

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? I started in 1981 as Land surveyor in Belgium working at the Belgian Cadastre, then at the National Geographical Institute (Geodeti Department), then for Star Informatic (software company), then at the Leica representative in Belgium (Product Specialist and then Sales & Marketing Manager), then at Leica Geosystems AG Heerbrugg as Program Director for GNSS reference station and monitoring program (where we developed SpiderNET and GeoMos) and in 2014 I founded our company looking after 3 market segments (high rise buildings vertical alignments, GNSS navigation and positioning, positioning infrastrures & UWB indoor location and Monitoring). Joëlle Dupont (a retired Chief Nurse) has been married since 1980 and we have 3 children and 9 grandchildren. Now our “kid” Nicolas is working with me …

Introducing Brand Ambassador Brent Fico from Allentown, Pennsylvania:

Where did you study? I did not formally study to become a surveyor but instead, learned on site through experience.

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? To become a licensed surveyor in Pennsylvania, one must either study surveying in college and sit for a state and national test or have years of experience combined with the state then national test.

How did you get into surveying? My mother was a draftsperson at a surveying firm, and they were looking to hire a handful of inexperienced help to further the profession. Almost like a paid internship!

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? As I no longer survey, I am now employed as Customer Integration Engineer at a survey equipment dealer. Essentially, I help surveying customers decide what equipment may be best for their companies, help train their employees, and support their teams on the back end with any issues or questions they may have.

How long have you been in the industry? I spent 13 years surveying in the field as well as 4 years in my current role.

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I would like to be a GKiS Ambassador because surveying seems to get overlooked as an integral part of everyday life. Without surveyors the roads, the buildings, the land, would all fail to exist or would fall into disrepair. GKiS shows the importance of surveying in all of its capacities, which is so important to keep the trade thriving!

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? As I stated before, without surveying in all of its forms, the world around us would fall into disrepair or cease to exist. It is important to show that surveying is not just angles and distances but scanning, planning and layout etc.

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? As a GKiS ambassador, I will be using my time to inform the younger generations that surveying is, was, and will continue to be a vital part of helping society work through career days, surveyors conferences and any other necessary avenue to spread the message!

What are your hobbies? Some of my hobbies include baseball, snowboarding, atv riding, and furthering my knowledge base. It is never too late to continue to learn new things!

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? If I or my company had a character, I believe it would be an adventurer or a mountain goat. Someone that is always willing to show up and help any and everywhere they are needed. Much like a surveyor showing up to each site ready to perform their necessary tasks.

What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? I believe the worksheets, posters and comic are great already. If I were to suggest anything further, perhaps a calendar next. Smaller posters, combined with surveying facts and the calendar below it.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? The only thing I can think to add is how important surveying is to everyday life. With how it tends to be overlooked as a profession for younger generations, it is going to become increasingly difficult to find the right people to teach those that are starting out and thus more difficult to necessary work done.

Introducing Pat the River Cat!

Company Name: We are L.I. Smith & Associates (LIS)! Our company dates back to 1975 when our co-founder o-fish-ally earned his professional surveying license in our state. When LIS was first named, it stood for his initials: Larry Isham Smith.

As our company has grown over the years, our name has adjusted to better encompass the services we provide. LIS now stands for Land Development, Infrastructure Design, and Surveying Services!

Location: We are located in the state of Tennessee. While we do have multiple locations in the state, our main river (office) is in Paris!

If you’re ever in the area in the spring, you cannot miss the World’s Largest Fish Fry! Don’t worry, I am the official company mascot and walk in the grand parade, so I’m safe!

Why is it important for your company to help Get Kids into Survey? Our team believes it is important to help Get Kids into Survey because we see value in educating the younger generations about the survey industry. We want to raise awareness about the importance of surveyors and what they do. Seeing kids learn about an industry that others may have forgotten is something that is very important and valued by our team. With a well-educated youth, we think any-fin is possible!

What do you do? We are a surveying and civil engineering company that provides services for public and private businesses. Our fin-tastic team of civil engineers and fellow surveyors work together to bring exceptional results to our clients in land development, infrastructure design, and surveying projects. 

How long have you been in the survey industry? LIS has been in the survey industry for almost 50 years, so we’re pro-fish-ionals! We are a family-owned company that dates back to 1975. Our business started as a team of only two staff members, our co-founders Larry and Lucile Smith. Almost five decades later, we are happy to see how much our business has grown throughout the region!

How did you end up getting into the geospatial industry? Our fish-tory in the geospatial industry dates all the way back to the 1970s! Shortly after graduating from Tennessee Technological University (TTU) with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, our co-founder Larry Smith became a Registered Land Surveyor (RLS) in the state of Tennessee in 1975. This professional licensure marked the birth of LIS, as it provided Larry with the necessary certification to do survey work at the pro-fish-ional level. At the time, Larry was working within the construction industry and pursuing survey work part-time. In 1980, Larry began to pursue his surveying career full-time. 

State a funny fact about you… My species can be found in freshwater habitats all over the world, and some can even walk on land or breathe air when the water is low! This makes surveying on land a whole lot easier!

Favourite piece of kit and why? My absolute favorite piece of equipment to use when surveying is the Lidar Drone! The reason I like the drone is because of its capability to pick up so much data. You can fly it for 15 minutes and collect millions of data points. Through this data, we are able to provide our clients with more than just a 2-D drawing. Now, we can send post processed data clouds that makes it seem as if you are standing on site. It’s so cool. I’m totally hooked!

Favourite Survey technique and why? My favourite survey technique is boundary surveys, especially in rural areas. 

Since catfish date all the way back to the days of the ancient Egyptians, I’m so-fish-ticated when it comes to history! My interest in learning about history definitely ties into my love for boundary surveys, as they give us the opportunity to retrace the steps of land surveyors from years ago! 

Boundary surveys allow us to follow the evidence left behind or called for by the previous surveyor(s). From the research, fieldwork, and drafting it’s somewhere between a treasure hunt, and a real-life jigsaw puzzle, and we are the ones that get to figure out how everything fits together, or how it was supposed to fit according to evidence.

 Your website: Our website is www.lismith.com. You should check us out! We have lots of information about our river (office) locations and blogs highlighting my co-fish (co-workers) and their many accomplishments. 

How did you choose the character and what does he/she/it represent? Mean to you? What’s his/her name? Since our main river (office) is located right on the Tennessee River in Paris, home of the World’s Biggest Fish Fry, a catfish was chosen as my character.

Every year in April, Paris will host a fish fry celebration and parade. Businesses build extravagant floats and get to walk in the parade. This is a big celebration for our community, and it is so fun to see everyone come together and participate. It’s even on TV!

My name is Pat the River Cat, but my friends sometimes call me Survey Fillet. Ideas for my name were suggested by my co-fish (co-workers). Members of our community then voted and chose my name! I think I was named after our President, Patrick Smith, but I’m not sure. It’s a very fishy coincidence if you ask me.

Introducing our Brand Ambassador Marco Andrade from Texas, USA

Where did you study? I studied Architecture at Cornell University and graduated with a professional degree in Architecture (B.Arch). I also studied Civil Engineering at the University of Texas at Tyler and graduated with a (B.Science). 

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area?

There are five different ways to qualify to take the exam and upon passing, become an SIT:

1. hold a Bachelor of Science in surveying;
2. hold a Bachelor’s degree with 32 hours in civil engineering, land surveying, math, photogrammetry, forestry, land law or the physical sciences and one year of experience working under a RPLS;
3. hold an Associate’s degree in surveying and have two years of experience working under a RPLS
4. have 32 hours in land surveying courses and two years of experience working under a RPLS; or
5. graduated from high school, have four years of experience working under an RPLS, and can prove you are self-educated in land surveying.

Once you become an SIT you will practice under an PLS or RPLS for a year and are eligible for take the exam. 

How did you get into surveying? Purely by chance while working on a Heavy Civil Job. They offered me a chance to lead a survey team and I took it and ran with it. I have never looked back. 

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? I would probably still be involved in the design/engineering field but in a different capacity. 

How long have you been in the industry? Roughly 9 years. 

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention? Texas Society of Professional Surveyors, American Society of Civil Engineers 

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I had a rough time finding mentors while I was growing in the field and I wanted to take away obstacles for future generations. 

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? Its a growing field that will take you to unexpected and exciting locations and professional opportunities. 

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? I want to show kids there are fun opportunities in the survey field like going camping, exploring rarely visited areas of the world, using new technologies and serving as a go between for many professions. 

What are your hobbies? The major hobby would be teaching others. Most of my time is dedicated to learning land surveying, engineering, and architecture. My family takes up the all my other time when I’m not teaching currently. 

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? Probably an armadillo. It’s always digging in the earth and it’s pretty Texan 🙂

What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? Showcasing next gen tech by using it in fun and weird way kids can relate to in real life. 

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? It’s a field that is in desperate need of new members, it will alway be in need, and it is growing in new and exciting ways.