Student-Run Coffee Cart Builds Confidence at Eisenhower Intermediate

Cup of Confidence program serves more than just caffeine, teaching life skills and promoting inclusion for students with disabilities.

Published on Mar. 4, 2026

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At Eisenhower Intermediate School in Oregon, Ohio, a student-run coffee cart called 'Cup of Confidence' is providing valuable life skills training and promoting inclusion for students with disabilities. The multi-disability unit at the school operates the coffee cart, with students practicing communication, organization, teamwork, and workplace skills as they prepare and deliver orders to staff and students each Friday. The program has helped break down stigma and ease nervousness around interacting with individuals with disabilities, while also making the participating students well-known throughout the school community.

Why it matters

By starting inclusion efforts at a young age, the Cup of Confidence program aims to help eliminate misconceptions about individuals with disabilities and foster a culture of understanding that can last beyond the students' time in school. The program is also providing crucial life skills training for students who often require additional support beyond what is available in a general education classroom.

The details

The Cup of Confidence coffee cart is operated by students in the multi-disability unit at Eisenhower Intermediate, which serves students with more intensive needs including those on the autism spectrum, as well as students with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and other cognitive disabilities. Students spend days preparing and organizing before delivering coffee orders to staff and students on Fridays, practicing communication, organization, teamwork, and workplace skills along the way. The program has helped break down stigma and ease nervousness some people may feel when interacting with individuals with disabilities, with the participating students becoming well-known throughout the school.

  • The Cup of Confidence program launched last year after receiving grant funding from the Oregon Schools Foundation.
  • The program operates every Friday at Eisenhower Intermediate School.

The players

Victoria Moore

An intervention specialist who teaches students in the multi-disability population at Eisenhower Intermediate School and created the Cup of Confidence program.

Oregon Schools Foundation

A nonprofit supported by private donors that provided grant funding to cover startup supplies for the Cup of Confidence program.

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What they’re saying

“We're teaching them all the time how to interact with others. Sometimes people from the general population don't know how to interact back. This has been a good way for the whole school to learn.”

— Victoria Moore, Intervention Specialist

“People with disabilities are just normal people. They may learn differently or have different needs, but they're just normal people.”

— Victoria Moore, Intervention Specialist

What’s next

The Cup of Confidence program is currently self-sustaining, but Moore would need to reapply for additional grant funding if she plans to expand the initiative in the future.

The takeaway

The Cup of Confidence program at Eisenhower Intermediate School is demonstrating how inclusion efforts starting at a young age can help eliminate misconceptions, foster understanding, and provide crucial life skills training for students with disabilities - ultimately creating a more welcoming and supportive school community.