Meet 3 local female scientists thriving in male-dominated field

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- When you ask little girls what they want to be when they grow up, how many of them say they want to be a scientist? While the number of women receiving degrees in science is on the rise, women are still widely outnumbered in many fields.

But that may be changing, at least here in the Houston area.

My job often takes me out of the studio, whether it's interviewing a fellow meteorologist for a story, emceeing an event or speaking to a classroom of students to tell them about my job. I want to introduce you to a group of women who are inspiring other young people to pursue careers in science.

Melissa Huffman is a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in League City. She has wanted to be a weather forecaster since she was a little girl. Lory Santiago-Vazquez is a marine biologist and professor at the University of Houston at Clear Lake. She studies how our environment impacts corals. Theresa Lawrence is an AP Chemistry teacher at Friendswood High School. She is retiring after more than 30 years of shaping young minds.

Check out the video above to hear from these three inspirational women about their careers in the sciences.

To hear more from Huffman, don't miss the Extreme Storms special this Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on ABC13 for a look at floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and other severe weather possible in southeast Texas.

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