Did you know that 7 in 10 Americans drink coffee every morning. That's 62% of people. Additionally, the average American drinks just over 3 cups a day.
At Reeths-Puffer High School, it is no different, thanks to our coffee house located in trophy row. The coffee house, a newer addition to RPHS, is open Monday through Friday on most weeks in the morning and during both lunches. Students and staff can order a drink in the morning and have it delivered to them during their first hour. It is also very common for the coffee house to be open during basketball games and other sporting events, where the public can enjoy its services during after school hours.
The coffee house, also a class called “Entrepreneurship,” is run by students like a business, where students can learn skills about business operations, like the importance of communication is to the success of the business. Students can sign up for the class, but because of its popularity, students are selected for the coffee house similar to a job application.
The coffee house has grown incredibly over the years in the number of applicants and students. In the first couple of years, there were only 20 students but now with about 100 kids applying every year, it has made the class very competitive, holding approximately 40 kids in each class. When asking coffee house student Brayden Mitchelson why he likes working the coffee house, he said, “I like being able to make all the drinks, and it's very laid-back and also being able to learn many life skills.”
Each week different groups of 10 students rotate working the coffee house. When students are not working at the coffee house, they have outside work to do. The outside classwork is about entrepreneurship and the risks and difficulties that come with being an entrepreneur.
At the coffee house there's a variety of drinks one can buy. The coffee house offers smoothies, hot and iced coffee, hot and frozen hot chocolate, and flavored or unflavored energy drinks. Teacher Di Hynde said, "I think the coffee house adds an element of fun to our school, and it also allows students to work together and interact with one another differently than in the typical classroom." Coffee house student Matthew Grimard echoed Hynde’s thoughts when he said, “my favorite thing about the coffee house is getting to interact with new students while having fun making drinks and learning about business.”
At the coffee house there's something for everyone, so if you ever need a drink, the coffee house is open at A and B lunch and in the morning from 7:15 till 7:50
Written by: Ian Wright