The Transition Perks coffee venture has added lots of ideas and a second location run by Lyons Township High School students with special needs.
In May, students began selling their own brand of coffee at United Kitchen, 26 Calendar Ave., in La Grange. They also serve as cashiers for customers buying a variety of gourmet baked goods and foods produced at the commercial kitchen.
United Kitchen owner Bridget Conlan said she has worked with the LT students since July before buying the business in October.
“They’re doing great,” Conlan said. “What I love about it is we have different kids almost every day so everyone gets a chance to try working at a coffee shop to see if it’s something they want to do after high school.”
Conlan said the students have risen to the challenge of ringing up sales for more than 50 foods sold at the commercial kitchen, as well as cleaning tables, display cases and windows. They work from 8 to 11 a.m. on weekdays.
“They definitely do all the things you would look for in an employee,” she said. “Customers love the kids. They’re disappointed if it’s noon and the kids are gone.”
Program coordinators launched the first coffee shop in November in a cooperative arrangement with Tropical Sno in Western Springs. The store sells shaved ice during the warmer weather at 1062 Hillgrove Ave. and allows Transition Perks to sell coffee throughout the summer and take over the space for the winter season.
Dave Paske, vocational coordinator, said the Western Springs shop has had about 3,000 transactions. The program’s initial goal was to have at least one customer per day for students to interact with community members, Paske said. Some mornings, the staff of two students serves 50 coffee drinkers.
“We’ve got five to 10 people who come in every day on their way to the train, or some who work in Cicero or Northbrook,” he said. “The community is especially patient. One guy missed his train, so he made it a point to come in earlier. He knew it can take extra time.”
LT’s transition program is for students 18 to 22 years old who have completed graduation requirements, but can continue receiving services to gain additional independent living and vocational skills.
After the coffee servers finish in the morning, an afternoon crew comes in to clean the coffee shop, gaining janitorial experience, Paske said. He noted the barista role of dealing with the public isn’t for everyone.
Erin McKeon, 19, greeted each customer with a warm smile and clearly enjoyed talking with them as she took orders. McKeon also completed a job training program at Kensington School, which offers preschool classes in La Grange.
“I’m a people person,’ McKeon said. “I’d like to work with children as a career.”
Her co-worker, John Cozzi, 19, was less chatty, but very efficient, making sure customers had everything they needed. Cozzi’s brother, Nicholas, a 2012 graduate of Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park, operates the Tropical Sno business and offers the space at no charge to Transition Perks.
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Program coordinators and students brainstormed several new ideas to build on the program’s success, Paske said. Frequent buyer cards are available for customers to buy nine coffees and get the 10th one free. Seventeen-ounce travel mugs also are sold for $17, and on refills, customers get 1 ounce free when they make a 16-ounce purchase.
Students also sell 10-ounce cans of ground coffee for $12. For each sale, $4 is set aside in an account so the student seller can attend summer programs, college classes or buy assisted technology devices, such as iPads, once they leave the program, Paske said.
Transition Perks also is launching a fundraising component in which school or other nonprofit organizations would share in profits from sales, he said.
At a neighbor’s suggestion, the Western Springs shop has begun offering a periodic story time for neighborhood kids, Paske said. The students are planning a holiday food drive, so customers will get a 50-cent discount for donating a food item, and one student has offered to play guitar, he said.
“We’re experimenting with different ways to let kids communicate,” he said.
McKeon said a number of dogs visit with their owners, so the shop offers dog biscuits.
Paske said special education officials from about a dozen other schools have toured the Western Springs shop to see how the program works.
The LT program also incorporates practice using public transportation, so students gain experience toward further independence.
“If they can go to and from a job site, it opens up a whole world of additional work opportunities for students close to exiting the program,” he said.
Twitter: @janemichaels22