Local

Kids + Coffee= $ 4 Charity!

 

What began as a lesson on collaborative problem-solving, has now turned into an innovative and unique fundraiser for both The Lippman School and the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. Lippman School Teaching Fellow, John Bennett, explains that last year, second grade students decided that they wanted to do something to improve safety on the playground. Once they realized that some of the improvements were going to cost money; they worked together to create a funding proposal for the school’s Board of Trustees.

 

That captured the imagination of Lippman Board member Michael Litt, who owns the Nervous Dog Coffee Bar. He suggested that students raise the money through coffee sales—but with a twist. Instead of selling bags of coffee branded with the Nervous Dog logo; they could create a custom-blended coffee for their school, design the bags themselves, and learn about business and entrepreneurship in the process. Bennett says that idea led to all kinds of new learning experiences for the students, who are now in third grade. Those include a classroom lecture from Litt on different kinds of coffee and where it is grown, Skype chats with Marketing experts in Washington, DC, a market survey to determine what kind of coffee would sell best, and some graphic design. They even came up with their own tagline; “Enjoy Our Blend With A Smile”.

 

 

Now, after a year and a half in the making, “The Lippman Blend” is ready to brew. It will be sold online, and over the counter at the Nervous Dog Coffee Bar in Akron and in Stow. But, the proceeds will not only benefit the school. They will also be shared with the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank, through the Nervous Dog’s fundraising arm, “Nervous Dog,Too”.

 

“Nervous Dog Coffee has always been a community-based, altruistic local business, partnering on projects with various organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, the Sierra Club, the Battered Women’s Shelter and other local schools,” Litt explains. “We recently locked arms with the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank, so that while folks are supporting causes about which they share a passion; they can also feed those in need of a helping hand.”

 

Sam Chestnut, Lippman’s Head of School, says “We are thrilled to partner with Nervous Dog Coffee to provide a curriculum-based fundraising experience for our students. The best educational experiences for students are those that offer “real world” application. Through our partnership, students apply their academic skills to develop marketing materials and strategies in an authentic entrepreneurial enterprise.”