The recently constructed cafe inside the Mid-Prairie High School library is now open for business.

The first official transactions took place Thursday, when the coffee shop began serving students and faculty before school. The full service coffee shop is operated by special education students at Mid-Prairie, giving them an opportunity to polish work skills that will serve them well past their time as Golden Hawks.

Special Education Teacher Traci Zahradnek says the cafe has not only been great for her students, but everybody at the school, “[The students] look forward to it everyday and are enjoying being able to try the different jobs. Then I think the kids who come in as customers and the teachers are enjoying it as well. It’s just a nice addition to our school.”

This officially wraps up a library renovation project that’s been in the works for the last year. Zahradnek says they’ve had to overcome challenges like delays in the construction, and the students not being able to consistently train the last few weeks due to weather. The cafe will be open to students and faculty before school; Zahradnek hopes to eventually be able to open it to the public.