So for this mom of teens, school is the best kind of chaos. A place where I know someone will always be needing something.

Was my son's university so focused on finding a prized world-changer they were telling ordinary students average goals ...

As a former high school teacher, I looked forward to graduation season during my years in the classroom. It was delightful to see my students honoring their accomplishments and peering hopefully into ...

My son got his first job when he was thirteen. He’d spend the summer working in hayfields doing hard labor in the sun. He loved making money, but more than that, he loved working with his body and ...

Ellen Giordano Austin is a freelance writer, based in Memphis, Tennessee. She and her husband have two grown-and-flown daughters. She enjoys solving jigsaw and crossword puzzles, biking, and playing ...

Kristen Downs is a blogger at Adventures in Motherhood, a violinist, a runner, and a community activist. A former CIA agent, commercial banker, and non-profit director, Kristen has emerged as a Jane ...

Let people see you. Feel deeply. Speak your truth with courage, even if your voice shakes. You can’t let the light in without ...

I had empathy for this man (who was obviously the dad of a college freshman) as he stood across the aisle from me, because in his quest to find the right tool to adjust to a new chapter in life, I saw ...

My husband and I have been empty nesters for almost a year now. While it certainly took us a while to get used to the deafening silence, and the aches in our hearts, we adjusted rather quickly to the ...

During my son’s years as an elementary school student and most of the middle school, I liked his friends a lot. He surrounded himself with sweet, curious, thoughtful kids who made good choices. Of ...

Last July, my oldest daughter, who had just graduated from college, accepted a job offer in New York City. The fact that she had found a job — one that she happened to be very excited about — was ...