Architecture and design students have been working with the Special Education department to create a new and improved coffee kiosk for the Brew Crew.

Located on the second floor across from the library commons, the Brew Crew gives transitional students with physical or mental disabilities the opportunity to sell coffee and goods. 

Architecture teacher Devan Castellano, mentioned the ideal design for the soon-to-be built coffee stand.

“Right now, the setup and takedown takes a lot of effort because they have to sort everything on site, so they’re hoping that they can store everything that they use within the cabinets and the kiosk and just provide more of a realistic Starbucks-type kiosk,” she said.

This entire process began with students in the Intro to Architecture class meeting with the Special Education department and discussing what needed to be improved upon.

Some of the bigger requirements incorporated these features: a more mobile structure, an ADA accessible transaction counter, a brewing station, and a serving area.

Dan Bruzdzinski, a Special Education faculty member, talked about the benefits of having more space and accessibility, which allows for more than one person working at a time.

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“There’s enough space in there for us to have at least three students at a time, so they can be at different spots. One can be the cashier, one can do the making, and then one can be the one to hand it to them on the receiving end.”

Six groups of students in the Intro to Architecture class came up with several different ideas which they eventually presented to the Special Ed Department after five to six weeks of working on the design. The department combined components of each project into a design that fit their exact needs.

Sophomore Nora Rolison who helped design the brew crew stand, explained the process of putting the design together.

“The process started with us drawing out a design on paper and then we started to narrow down our ideas until we picked one final design. Then, we drew a more detailed sketch on the iPad and modeled it on the computer using a program called SketchUp, which is 3D so it allows you to see the measurements and how the colors work together.”

The Geometry Design and Construction class has been building on the design ever since the approval. Castellano hopes that in the next three weeks the final coffee kiosk will be built and ready for students to use.

 For many students, pressures can be high considering this is the first larger project both classes have worked on.

“We’ve done a bunch of building projects, but this is the first real big build, and I think that everyone feels a little bit of pressure to deliver something that is a professional project,” said Castellano.

Throughout this process, it was neat for many students to be able to come up with different designs, knowing that their ideas could potentially be used in the final coffee stand design.

“It was fun to think about seeing our own design in the school and what we would want it to look like if it could fit right there on the second floor,” said Rolison.

With this new setup, the Brew Crew will hopefully be open all day instead of just the mornings.

“A lot of people don’t realize what’s happening there, but now with the new design and everything I think it will catch people’s eye,” said Bruzdzinski.