Sending your kids to college in another state or country can be stressful and anxiety-inducing. A service in Boston aims to make it a bit easier.
Concierge Services For Students allows parents to "rent a parent" for their kids who are studying far away from home. Staff at CSS are available 24/7 in the event of an emergency, and they can also help students with things like laundry, car services, banking, moving to new apartments, and more.
Concierge Service for Students has existed since 1990. The cofounders, Joan Alfond and Tamara Kumin, are parents to six kids combined. Their kids attended prep schools in New England, which made them aware of how challenging it can be to send children to schools that are far from home.
Though they sent their kids away for school, they had to visit them frequently to help with doctor visits, shopping, college prep, and more, which helped them understand the need for the service they decided to create.
They saw what students really needed: what they call a "mom away from home."
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"Joan (now retired) and Tammy have cultivated in CSS a company that performs a professional service that embodies the heart of the company — that is family," they say on the CSS website.
Tamara told the New York Post that she is "a mom away from mom" and "a total support system for students." The "parents" that work for CSS are on-call 24/7 in case of emergencies and can assist students with a variety of things that they might need help with while away from home.
They can help students get settled in their new homes. They'll also help kids do laundry, go shopping, start a gym membership, find a doctor, arrange travel, attend campus events and other special events, visit colleges, find an apartment, find storage for their belongings, and more.
Although the "moms" are based in Boston, they also can provide services outside of the Boston area. According to New York Post, these "parents" have also had customers in New York and have local "errand runners" there who can help students.
Beyond offering assistance with grocery shopping and laundry, the "moms" really aim to be supportive and help students feel at home while they're away from home. "We’re there for them and they know it. They’re totally comfortable to let us know what they need — all five of us — we all know exactly what’s going on with each kid, how they live, their families, everything," Tamara told New York Post.
The "moms" charge $10,000 for an academic year. One former customer, Al Kabbani, moved to the US from Saudi Arabia to attend Tilton boarding school in New Hampshire in 2003 and the "moms" helped him feel less homesick while he stayed in the US for high school, college, and work.
CSS helped him feel at home by providing him with someone to talk to, offering him home-cooked meals, and helping him with transportation. The "moms" even helped him during a medical emergency.
"The moms did a really great job at making me feel like family," he told the New York Post.
