Advice for parents explaining to children what changes may need to take place when a family faces economic hardship. WUSTL senior consultant and author Karen Levin Coburn.

References:

1. March 25, 2009 — Break It to 'Em Gently: Telling Kids About Financial Woes in the The Wall Street Journal

Sue Shellenbarger refers to advice offered by WUSTL senior consultant Karen Coburn, about how parents should talk to college-age kids about a downturn in family finances.

References:

1. Jan. 28, 2009 — Discussing Family Finances With a Student in the The Wall Street Journal online

When kids head off to college, parents are forced to separate themselves from what has been a constant hands-on job for years. Parents and students comment on "Letting Go: A Parents' Guide to Understanding the College Year," by WUSTL's Karen Levin Coburn.

References:

1. Feb. 8, 2008 — Parents learn how to let go in the technological age in the NPR Morning Edition

A cell phone can be an "electronic leash," as some teens call it. And mom and dad are quickly reachable if something goes awry.
If asked to help solve a manageable problem, parents should not provide step-by-step instructions. They shouldn't brush off the problem, either. Realize that students can feel overwhelmed at first, advises WUSTL's Karen Levin Coburn, co-author of Letting Go: A Parents' Guide to Understanding the College Years.

References:

1. Aug. 20, 2007 — Cell phones on campus make cutting the umbilical cord more difficult in the Miami Herald

and 7 others.

Parents across Long Island are asking questions these days as they help pack their children's belongings or accompany them to campuses across the country. Their minds are filled with questions about crime and campus security, communicating with their students, finances, academics, social life, and separation anxiety.
One of the experts commenting is Karen Levin Coburn, WUSTL's associate dean for freshman transition and co-author of Letting Go: A Parent's Guide to Understanding the College Years.

References:

1. Aug. 19, 2007 — Back to Campus: Parental Anxiety 101 -- What moms and dads need to know in the Newsday (NY)

Article offers advice on how to find your life's work.
Blame it on career anxiety, college counselors say. For a variety of reasons, many young adults are more anxious about career preparation than previous generations.
The apprehension often begins with the college-admissions race. After striving to win acceptance to competitive colleges, many think they should have "an equally strategic approach to their post-graduate plans," says WUSTL's assistant vice chancellor Karen Levin Coburn.

References:

1. Aug. 2, 2007 — Ways to teach your children to find the work they love in the The Wall Street Journal

and 1 others.

Cell phones, meanwhile, have allowed parents to stay more connected than before.Some educators expressed concern about the frequent contact, saying it could stunt self-reliance. But many students do not seem to mind when parents call professors to justify grades or intervene in roommate disputes. "I think part of growing up is learning how to solve problems on your own," Karen Levin Coburn, assistant vice chancellor for students at Washington University in St. Louis and co-author of Letting Go: A Parents' Guide to Understanding the College Years.

References:

1. Aug. 21, 2006 — College and universities find it difficult to enforce a line between a parent's involvement and interference in the Houston Chronicle

More on orientation programs for parents offered by colleges across the country features the workshop developed at Washington University by Karen Coburn, assistant vice chancellor for students. Coburn's book Letting Go is growing in sales with each passing year. In an era when parents increasingly orchestrate their children's lives, and nowhere more so than in the process of applying to college, the business of orientation for grown-ups is flourishing.

References:

1. Sept. 15, 2004 — Weaning parents from children as they head off to college in the New York Times