HAZLETON, Pa. — High school students from Immanuel Christian School are busy working at Leo's Little Kitchen. It's opening week for the breakfast spot dreamt up by the school's CEO, Susan Selby.
Operating out of the former Donut Connection location, Leo's Little Kitchen helps support tuition assistance for low-income students at Immanuel Christian School.
Leo's Little Kitchen is completely student-run. The students began planning for the business in 2023 with the assistance of the Penn State Hazelton launchBox. There, students participated in a series of entrepreneurship classes that gave them the tools and skills to put Leo's Little Kitchen into action.
"Yes, so we have partnered with the Penn State Launchbox, and our high school students have attended classes there at the launchbox. They walk from the high school to the launchbox, twice a week all year long, and they've learned all kinds of things about how to run a business," said Selby.
"I have never had a group of students more excited to come in and learn about cash flow, statements, inventory management. Their level of passion for this project has just been amazing this entire time," added William Andahazy, Penn State Entrepreneurship Coordinator.
Now, taking orders and serving coffee, these students learned how to build the business from the ground up.
"It was an amazing experience to learn business skills and really how to run a business and how to open it because we came in here and we cleaned everything up, moved everything around, and made it into what it is now," said Sarah Polashenski, a senior at Immanuel Christian School.
"At first, I'll say you have to have a little bit of patience and perseverance to start this company just because, at first, nothing goes exactly how you planned it to be," added Nicole Tejeda, a junior at the school.
"For a school to make their own shop, I feel like it's a first-time thing you don't really see this often, so I'm really excited of what Leo's Kitchen is going to become," said Javier Vazquez, a junior at the school.
You can find the students working in Leo's Little Kitchen every Tuesday and Thursday.