A Latte Learning: UNK coffee shop gives students a taste of business management

Manager Becca Koch works behind the counter at Brewed Awakening, a student-run coffee shop on the UNK campus. (Photo by Erika Pritchard, UNK Communications)

KEARNEY – In many ways, Brewed Awakening is just like any other coffee shop in Kearney.

Customers looking for a quick pick-me-up can order all the popular drinks – from lattes, frappés and mochas to cappuccino, tea, hot chocolate and basic black coffee. There are around 50 different options, including specialities like the Almond Joy, Raspberry Colada, Oatmeal Cookie and Sticky Cinnamon Bun, along with prepackaged breakfast foods and a lunch menu that features items such as pizza, walking tacos, wraps and sandwiches.

“We have a lot to offer here in this little coffee shop. There’s definitely something for everybody,” said Becca Koch, who lists the Sunny Daze (white mocha with hazelnut and caramel) and Queen Bee (latte with cinnamon, honey and vanilla) as her go-to beverages.

Koch has worked at Brewed Awakening for a little over two years and served as manager since January 2024, overseeing a staff comprised of six other University of Nebraska at Kearney students.

That’s what makes this coffee shop stand out – it’s operated entirely by Lopers with support from the UNK College of Business and Technology.

Located on the lower level of the West Center building, Brewed Awakening allows students to put their skills and knowledge to work in a real-world business setting, creating a unique environment for hands-on learning.

“Brewed Awakening is experiential learning, and that’s what the College of Business and Technology is all about. When you come here, you’re not just buying a coffee like you can do at 20 other places in town or across campus. You’re supporting our students as they learn about running a business,” said Sara Bennett, director of UNK’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Rural Development.

Bennett provides strategic oversight for the coffee shop, but it’s the students who are serving customers, developing new drinks, creating marketing campaigns and coming up with ideas to improve day-to-day operations. Introduced last semester, the popular energy infusion menu – fruit-flavored concoctions made with Celsius and Bubbl’r energy drinks – was the brainchild of one of the baristas on staff.

“It’s a really fun place to work,” said Koch, a junior from Seward who’s studying business administration and supply chain management. “Not only do you get to make connections with faculty and other students but you also learn a lot about how to run a small business.”

“Plus, I’ve never been late for a class because I’m always in this building in the morning,” she added with a smile.

Brewed Awakening is open 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday, so employees have plenty of time to study after work and on weekends.

That’s a major perk, according to Koch, and so are the abilities students gain.

During her time as manager, Koch has built confidence in herself and developed valuable leadership skills.

“When I first started here, I was very shy and I didn’t really interact with people as much,” she said. “Now, I’m talking to everybody and I’m very comfortable communicating with my peers. I feel like I’ve really grown a lot by working here.”

VALUABLE PARTNERSHIP

Those benefits extend beyond the regular staff members.

The coffee shop also serves as a classroom for students in Travis Hollman’s small business management course. In fall 2023, the UNK lecturer started partnering with Brewed Awakening to add an experiential learning component to his instruction.

“It’s become really popular,” Hollman said. “We offer the course every semester, and it fills pretty fast. We’re almost at the point where we need to offer two face-to-face sections because there’s enough demand for it now.”

Each student in the class – a total of 26 this semester – is required to work a few shifts behind the counter to get a better feel for the business. That firsthand experience is beneficial when they’re split into teams focusing on areas such as products and pricing, finances, human resources and operations, innovation and marketing and promotions.

“I ran a business for 20 years, and there always seems to be a disconnect between the classroom and actually doing it,” Hollman said. “This is a way to really create that connection. Instead of just giving them hypotheticals from a textbook, we’re allowing students to be boots on the ground inside the operation. You can’t get immersed to this degree in a normal lecture class.”

The small business management class has made a big impact on Brewed Awakening.

By calculating profit margins on each item, those students help the business set competitive prices and determine which products should stay or go. They also came up with the idea for a customer loyalty card – buy 10 drinks, get the 11th free – and a Faculty Flavor Faceoff competition that featured personalized drinks representing various UNK faculty, served by a few “celebrity” baristas from across campus.

“That became a really big deal,” Hollman said of the Faculty Faceoff. “We tripled sales during the promotion.”

Those successes are worth celebrating, but the failures can be equally valuable lessons. For instance, a pop-up shop at the Health Science Education Complex showed the group there isn’t enough demand to support a second location on campus.

“Running a business is tough, and I want the students to see that,” Hollman said, “not to deter them, but to show them what they can expect after college.”

The small business management class is currently working on an online ordering system that would improve service during passing periods – a busy time when customers stop by between classes – as well as an outreach effort targeting students and organizations within Discovery Hall and the College of Education.

Clayton Kelly, a UNK senior from Gretna, is part of the innovation team working on that outreach plan.

“I feel like a lot of people who don’t have classes in West Center, they have no idea that Brewed Awakening even exists down here,” he said. “It’s really a one-of-a-kind space, and we want more people to see that. Because it’s a student-run business, it’s a lot different than your Starbucks and your Scooters. The money you pay to get your coffee goes to the college and helps students prepare for their futures, which is a really cool thing.”

Kelly is studying accounting and supply chain management, with plans to pursue a Master of Business Administration at UNK after graduating in May. He believes these experiences are excellent preparation for that program and his future career.

“I’ve never been in a class where I actually get to look that in depth at a business and be part of the day-to-day operations,” Kelly said. “In a lot of classes, you’re just looking at businesses and learning about them, but we actually get to be part of the business and the decision-making. That opportunity will give me a head-start no matter where I end up after college.”

Bennett sees the same return.

“No matter what their major is, students can take the skills they’re learning here – communication, customer service, marketing, project management – and apply them to their job after graduation,” the entrepreneurship center director said.

CAMPUS GATHERING SPACE

In addition to the educational aspects, Brewed Awakening serves another important purpose.

It builds a sense of community within the College of Business and Technology and west campus by providing a welcoming space for students, staff, faculty and others to meet, study or just hang out.

Originally located in the Health and Sports Center when it opened in 2012, Brewed Awakening moved to West Center four years later and was completely remodeled and reimagined during a $1 million renovation project completed at that building in early 2021.

Now, there’s a fireplace lounge, booth and tabletop seating and an “open concept” floor plan that creates additional room for events and larger group gatherings. The entire area has a modern coffee shop feel.

“With the renovation that happened a few years ago, this is a much more communal space,” Bennett said. “People want to be here; they want to hang out. It’s a space to build community and collaboration – and have coffee, too.”