Teal Café is a student-run business with the STEPS program at Aliso. Ms. Levanthal and Dr. Radley co-founded the café; this is their third year running it. The café has a wide range of menu items from hot and iced coffees, to hot and iced teas, to lemonades, along with a variety of different modifications and additions teachers can add to their drinks.
Mrs. Kaczmarek says, “I always order the coffee with cream.”
Mrs. McClellan, a Spanish teacher, says, “I like getting the fruit punch crystallite with ice.”
The café allows the students to learn how to set up a business, how to run a business, and how to take inventory.
Ms. Levanthal said, “We are working on their communication skills, so not interrupting the classes, saying hello, asking if they can come in, trying to say to the best of their ability, here is your drink, receiving payment, and giving back any cash that’s needed.”
Mrs. McClellan said, “It makes my day when they come in and they bring my drink, it brings me some joy, so I’m happy to do it.”
For the teachers to place the orders, the students send out order slips to all the teachers at the beginning of the week, or the teachers receive an email where they can place their orders.
Ms. Rodríguez describes the ordering process as being “super easy.”
Ms. Rodríguez said, “It’s just a Google Doc. You put your name, room number, and your order.”
Through this café, the students have grown in their responsibilities by being the managers of the café as well as sending out and receiving orders.
Mrs. McClellan notices the students growing through their experiences, saying, “They get more used to coming in.”
Many teachers and staff are looking forward to the Teal Café opening again this year, and the café hopes to grow its menu in the future.
