Tavern on the Hill Coffee Shop

TIPC Ratings

APPROACHING – Research and Information Fluency:

The teachers researched the creation of school-based enterprises (SBE’s) and discovered that another high school in the Virginia area had a similar coffee shop with success. The teachers then collaborated and created their own SBE at Tucker High School.

In preparation of running the Tavern on the Hill, students have collaborated with the local Chick Fil A by preparing kid’s meal bags by inserting a toy and straw in each. Also, with Health Diagnostics Laboratory, students complete binders with inserts for their potential customers. And, in the Spring the students put candy in plastic eggs for a church in the community. Previous years students have also provided faculty and staff with holiday gift wrapping for a nominal fee. The students are participating in a authentic and real world situation by offering this service to faculty and staff.

TARGET – Communication and Collaboration:

The Tavern on the Hill Coffee Shop was designed as an instructional program to help students with moderate to severe disabilities prepare for employment. For the past two years, this school based enterprise has given students an opportunity to operate a real world, small, non-profit coffee shop for faculty and staff. The students must coordinate their efforts and collaborate not only within but also between teams. Examples of teams include the order takers, the coffee makers, the deliverers, the cleanup crew, etc. Recently, the staff and students created a Google.Doc template to allow faculty and staff to place orders online. Additionally, those placing orders communicate with the students via email and telephone. Students personally deliver the coffee to faculty and staff. They must practice their customer service skills by using appropriate greetings, collecting the money, making change, and thanking the customer. Furthermore, after all the coffee has been delivered, students then have to replenish supplies, determine which items need to be purchased, and make sure the money balances. This is an integral piece of the ongoing process of running the coffee shop. It is the reflective nature of this task that ensures the success of The Tavern on the Hill. In December, Channel 99 came to video the student’s working and this will be aired in the Winter/Spring 2012.

TARGET – Critical Thinking and Problem Solving:

One of the essential questions of this project is – “How do you successfully run a business or coffee shop?” One of the ways to be successful is customer satisfaction. Consequently, the product must be consistently flavorful and accurately prepared. When students are filling the orders, there are a variety of variables. They have to customize the product which is made-to-order and this is challenging for them. For example, there are many flavors of creamer including some non-fat and sugar-free, and there are a variety of sweeteners (raw sugar, equal, splenda, sweet-n-low) all which add to the difficulty of the task.

Another very important question to be addressed is “How can we deliver hot beverages in the most efficient time to staff and faculty?” The students discovered that planning was the key to delivering hot beverages (regular coffee, decaf, and hot chocolate). The moderate to severe disabilities students were able to memorize and recall the layout of the campus; therefore using the campus map, delivery routes were created from the order form delivery location. Customer orders were arranged based on close proximity to one another in order to decrease travel time from the coffee shop. In addition, delivery teams were available immediately after the coffee was made, thereby reducing the wait time to be delivered. When students deliver the coffee, they also have to count out 0.75 cents and frequently have to make change for the customers, which is a difficult task and higher level thinking for this population of students.

Additionally, students analyzed data from the coffee shop operations to aide the students in running a successful business. A graph was created to trace the amount of sales for 17 days. Upon interpreting the data, the total sales calculated to be $479.83 before expenses. In addition each day, the Mean was $28.22, Median $24.10 and Mode of $21.00. Students also view the overall data in the Google Doc spreadsheet (summary of responses) to determine which products are selling the best.

TARGET – Creativity and Innovation:

To advertise, the students made large posters and displayed them around campus. They also created “coffee cup” reminders (invitations) for every faculty and staff member. After analyzing the data and Google Doc graphs, students decided to offer teachers a pre-paid re-occurring option. Additionally, they are considering offering a buy-9-get-one free discount card in the next semester. In the Spring months, the students change the menu slightly by eliminating the hot chocolate but adding lemonade and Arnold Palmer’s (iced tea and lemonade). The theme of the google form also pictures a Coffee pot and has a brown and green background – symbolizing the coffee and a “Tavern on the Green” feel. The students are continuing to think of new ideas to try to market and grow their business, which is innovation. They are very engaged in the coffee shop processes and are learning a great deal about running a successful business. Not to mention the Tavern on the Hill Coffee Shop in it’s entirety is providing a service for faculty and staff that is a unique and innovative project.