Coffee has become a morning staple for many throughout the school year as it can help perk people up and makes the early morning slightly more bearable. But should someone forget their coffee on their way in, there’s little they could do before class starts to get their coffee fix. But now, the ACC classes have created a solution: SPHS’s Falcon Fuel.

Blaire Chesek, a Special Educator for the ACC program, is the teacher that kicked off the coffee cart. She first started it at her previous school, Pershing Hill Elementary and their fundraising had included a GoFundMe to raise the money needed for the cart. A generous donation of $700 from the Military Spouses group that worked with the school helped the fundraising raise $1300, which was enough to get them their starting supplies and set the fueling station up. When Chesek brought the idea to SPHS, it caught on and the ACC students started practicing with the actual cart.

“I wanted a way for my students to take ownership of something within the school building. A coffee cart seemed like a great way for them to be able to do that all while practicing communication and functional skills,” Chesek said. 

A cup only costs $1 and the coffee cart is already offering coffee, black tea and green tea for beverage options. They also have sweeteners like sugar, honey and equal, as well as plain-creamer and a non-dairy creamer option always available. The multiple options gives the students lots of practice working with the customer, putting the drinks together and learning money management.

“On average, it takes a student with a significant cognitive disability 1,800 consistent trials to master a new skill, behavior [or] task,” Chesek said.

The practice the students put in paid off and the coffee cart is already in service. Though it’s only available to faculty, it’s open Monday-Friday from 7:15-7:50 in the morning. Though Chesek brews the coffee in the morning and sets it up, the students do all of the servicing, restocking and any other needs the coffee cart has. In the future, Chesek is hoping to expand to selling other snacks, baked goods and drinks. 

“That will give the students more opportunities to ​practice organizing a larger number of materials, along with having to scan a larger array of items to service the customer,” Chesek said. 

With all the effort put in by the students and their dedication to operating their own business, Falcon Fuel is looking to become a staple here at SPHS. The classes are looking forward to using it to develop life skills and the faculty is looking forward to getting their coffee in the morning.