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Career-Connected Learning

Kids Count Grant

Aloha Coffee Caboose

BEF invested in career connected learning at Aloha High School where students in the special education programs were able to explore new job skills through working in the Coffee Caboose, a classroom coffee shop experience that helped students develop barista, marketing, and customer service skills.

Aloha HS

Career-connected learning, Special Education

Funded by: Community Support, Sgt. Eamon O'Reilly

At A Glance:

BEF Investment: $10,000

100%

Of students could independently prepare drinks and serve customers

By focusing on one order and one delivery at a time, the students built a loyal customer base

$5,000

In revenues in its first month helped Coffee Caboose become a self-sustaining student-run business

BEF invested $10,000 to provide students in the special education program at Aloha with authentic opportunities to build interpersonal, vocational, and collaborative skills through meaningful, real-world experiences. The project provided functional life skills in a hands-on environment while supporting social-emotional growth and self-advocacy.

To support Coffee Caboose, students received hands-on training for how to run a coffee shop. This included mastering the use ofan espresso machine, learning milk frothing techniques, and practicing drink design.

A cornerstone of the program was the daily drink delivery service, when students delivered beverage orders to staff during the school mornings. This routine offered students meaningful experience on time management and customer service.

By the end of the year, the student baristas were independently preparing drinks. Beyond these skills, they were able to connect with the general education students, and social barriers were broken when everyone wanted to be involved with The Coffee Caboose.

I was proud to use my social media platform to introduce my followers to the specialized programs at Aloha and the mission-driven work at BEF. I'm so grateful for my followers' support of these amazing programs in honor of Radar. Radar may be retired, but we will keep serving.

Sgt. Eamon O'Reilly and K-9 Radar (retired), Washington County Sherriff's Office

A cornerstone of Coffee Caboose was the daily drink delivery service, in which students delivered custom beverage orders to staff each morning. This consistent routine offered meaningful work experience in time management, navigation, professionalism, and customer service.

Trevor Hannigan, Teacher

Wearing a Coffee Caboose t-shirt, with its tagline "Brewing Potential One Cup at a Time," became a symbol of pride for participating students.

Special Education Program Teacher

STEM in the classroom

BEF's Building STEAM 4 All Initiative teams up with the district and local businesses to engage students in hands-on, experiential learning. Thanks to the support of Analog Devices and First Tech Federal Credit Union, additional tech learning tools are now available to teachers through the Innovation Lending Library. This library is available to all schools across the district, especially in weekly "tech specials" taught at the elementary schools level. In January, tech instructors came together for a special morning of professional development and to learn about the new equipment available in the Lending Library.

Aloha High School Student Run Business: Doggie Dots

What started with a single social media post to a BEF fundraising site has resulted in video and television coverage, highlighting Doggie Dots at the Washington County K9 Trials and nearly $35,000 in donations from supporters around the world.

Middle School Extended Day Programs

Now in its 15th year, the Safe and Sound for Student Success (S4) program offered by BEF continued its vital work in the 2024-25 school year. Eight middle schools participated, serving 1,184 middle school students with an extended school day with access to extracurricular coupled with academic accountability.

Independent Living Skills for Community Transition Program Students

BEF is proud to support the Community Transition Program with a $10,000 investment for groceries and equipment needed to help students build independent living skills in the kitchen.