SYCAMORE – Lynn O’Shaughnessy, author of the bestselling book “The College Solution: A Guide for Everyone Looking for the Right School at the Right Price,” will present strategies at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 31, in the Sycamore High School Auditorium, for cutting through college-marketing hype and finding the most affordable schools.

A veteran financial writer based in San Diego, Calif., O’Shaughnessy is the college columnist for CBS MoneyWatch and has been featured in such national publications such as U.S. News & World Report,Wall Street Journal,The New York Times, Parade Magazine, Smart Money and Money Magazine.

O’Shaughnessy, who also writes her own blog at TheCollegeSolution.com, was driven to research her book when she and her husband began contemplating how they were going to afford college for their two children. She was ultimately able to shave roughly $125,000 off the price of college for her daughter, who is a college graduate, and her son, who is a junior at Beloit College. Families can make college more affordable if they become empowered consumers as they navigate their college choices, O’Shaughnessy says.