Your student is 7,000 miles away. We're seven subway stops.
Campus Parents NYC is a small, family-run support service for parents whose children study at Columbia, NYU, Barnard, Parsons, Fordham and the other New York City colleges. Wherever home is, when you can't be here, a vetted local parent can.
Photo: Alan Turkus, CC BY 2.0
I'm a mother living on the Upper West Side, a few blocks from Columbia. I grew up in Japan, raised my family in New York, and I know how it feels to have someone you love in a city you can't reach quickly.
This isn't a delivery service. It's a person your student can call when the radiator fails, the pharmacy is confusing, or they're sick and don't want to bother you at 3am your time. I'll text you afterwards so you know what happened.
I speak English and Japanese, and I work with families from anywhere. For other languages, including Korean, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hindi, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German and Italian, I work with vetted parents in my network who share your language. Ask about yours.
Amber, founder
What we do
Two kinds of help: the everyday things a nearby parent would do, and the moments when it matters that an adult shows up.
Everyday
- Monthly check-in over coffee, with a short note to you afterwards
- Birthday, exam-week and 'just because' deliveries, chosen with them in mind
- Grocery runs, dry cleaning, package pickups and returns
- Move-in and move-out help, including storage between semesters
- Recommendations for doctors, dentists, banks, phone plans and landlords who don't take advantage of students
When it matters
- Accompanying your student to urgent care, the ER or a specialist, and staying until they're seen
- Prescription pickup and a hot meal when they're unwell
- Wellness visit if you haven't heard from them and are worried
- Help reading a lease, disputing a charge or dealing with a building issue
- A calm adult on the phone, in your language, when something has gone wrong
Anshin: for families abroad, and across the US and Canada
- Contact by WhatsApp, LINE, KakaoTalk, WeChat or email, in your language and your time zone
- Help opening a US bank account, getting a phone plan and understanding US health insurance
- Airport pickup on first arrival and orientation to the neighbourhood
- Invoicing in USD, with local-currency invoicing on request
- Explaining how New York colleges, landlords, banks and doctors actually work, whether you're in Mumbai, São Paulo, Berlin or Toronto
We don't attend classes, contact professors, report on your student's private life, or do anything they've asked us not to. Students are adults; we're there for safety and support, not surveillance.
How it works
You write to us
Tell us which college, when they arrive, and what you're worried about. We reply within a day.
We meet your student
A first coffee near campus so they know who to call and have our number saved.
You get a monthly note
A short update after each check-in. More often if something comes up.
Call whenever
Members can reach us seven days a week. Emergencies come first.
Pricing
Simple, so you know what you're paying for. Prices are for the 2026-27 academic year and exclude the cost of goods purchased on your behalf.
One visit
- Coffee with your student near campus
- A short note to you afterwards
- Book as often as you like
- Deliveries and errands from $45
Semester
- Unlimited advice by message
- Monthly check-in visit
- One delivery included
- Emergency support
Full year
- Everything in Semester
- Two deliveries included
- Move-in or move-out help
- Priority response
Anshin International
- Everything in Full year
- Arrival airport pickup and setup week
- Bank, phone and insurance setup
- Contact in your language and time zone
- Four deliveries included
Not sure yet? Start with one visit: tell us who, where and when, and we'll go and check in. Hospital accompaniment and moving help are quoted separately.
Questions parents ask
Are you affiliated with the colleges?
No. We're an independent family business and not endorsed by any university. That's deliberate: we work for you and your student.
Who exactly will be helping my child?
Amber personally, for English and Japanese-speaking families. For other languages, a parent from our network whom Amber has met, background-checked and worked with. You'll know their name before they meet your student.
What if my student doesn't want this?
Then it won't work, and we'll say so. The first meeting is partly to see whether they're comfortable. Most are relieved to have a local number that isn't their parents.
Will you tell me everything my student does?
No. We'll tell you if they're safe and how they seem. We won't report on their social life. If there's a genuine safety concern, we'll always contact you.
How do I pay from outside the US?
Card payment in USD through a secure link, from any country. Local-currency invoicing is available for the International plan.
Which colleges do you cover?
Manhattan campuses: Columbia, Barnard, NYU, The New School and Parsons, Fordham Lincoln Center, Pace, Cooper Union, Juilliard, FIT and Hunter. Ask about others.
Get in touch
Tell us a little about your student. We'll reply within one working day, in the language you write in.