May 22, 2025
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Espresso yourself: Student-run café perks up Yorkville High students, staff

Brew Den provides work experience for vocational ed students

By Lilli Mueller – Shaw Local News Network Correspondent
Jacqueline Salinas rings up a Brew Den Customer paying with Apple Pay.

Jacqueline Salinas rings up a Brew Den Customer paying with Apple Pay. The Brew Den offers vocational ed students an opportunity to gain work skills while working with their fellow students. (Photo provided by Lilli Mueller)

Lately, Yorkville High School’s Brew Den has been brewing up more than just coffee: it’s been serving up opportunities for vocational education students to gain real-world work experience and life skills.

The Brew Den opened in 2022 under vocational program coordinator Christina Doom, a vocational ed teacher at Yorkville.

“The cart has provided a great hands-on opportunity for students to interact with their peers and practice soft skills worked on in the classroom in a real life setting, “ Doom said.

Located within the school’s athletic lobby, the Brew Den is open to students and staff throughout the day’s flex period. Within the past year, the Brew Den has added food items such as muffins and pound cakes to their coffees and beverages.

Yorkville Brew Den welcomes their newest edition, the “Brewmobile”, a coffee cart on wheels located in the high school's athletic lobby.

Yorkville Brew Den welcomes their newest edition, the “Brewmobile”, a coffee cart on wheels located in the high school's athletic lobby. (Photo provided by Lilli Mueller)

The student-run cafe is part of a transitional skills program where vocational education students develop soft skills, take orders, make drinks and engage with customers. The internship-style program was created to bridge the gap between skills learned in high school, and those required in the workforce. Upon completion, students can go on to work at local businesses like grocery stores or coffee shops.

Offering a host of amenities like loyalty programs, delivery options and accepting a variety of payment methods, the Brew Den’s sales have been steadily rising.

It even takes Apple Pay.

“Our sales have grown tremendously within the past year,” Doom said. “Forty-five student sales a day for an hour period of time is not bad.”

Senior Erica Ladra has become a regular Brew Den customer.

“The Brew Den has been a nice addition to my mornings, especially now that it offers snacks,” she said. “And I love seeing my friends behind the counter.”

Looking to the future, teachers and students can expect the Brew Den to continue to expand its services to meet the rising demand. With future plans to offer merchandise sold through the Brewmobile, their coffee cart on wheels, opportunities for Yorkville’s vocational education students continue to grow.