![CAFE CHATTER — Palo Alto High School special education teacher Dan Gallucio looks towards the entrance of Sko Joe’s Cafe. "Interacting with customers, making cinnamon rolls, making coffee, making tea; they [students] are doing it themselves,” he said.](https://verdemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/IMG_1776-1-1200x900.jpg)
Almost two dozen students, aides and teachers move around room 409, the room that houses Sko Joe’s Cafe. Like a well oiled machine, aides guide students who line up to put on aprons, wipe down tables, set up the cash register and wheel out the delivery carts.
Sko Joe’s Cafe is staffed entirely by Palo Alto High School students in the Extensive Support Needs program, which is a subprogram of the Special Education program.
According to the Palo Alto Unified School District website, the Special Education program is for students with Individual Education Programs who need more support.
A student who works at Sko Joe’s says that he believes working at the cafe is an engaging experience.
“It’s kind of interesting to see new faces,” he said.
Sko Joe’s Cafe operates from 9:30 to 10:30 every Friday morning, serving both teachers and district office employees. It is advised by Paly special education teachers Dan Galluccio and Lisa Jauregui.
The cafe serves coffee, tea, hot chocolate and fresh baked cinnamon rolls for $3, as well as apples or bananas for $1. They also offer a rotation of seasonal items.
According to Gallucio, Sko Joe’s Cafe opened to give his students experience with real-world activities.
“We’re more focused on functional skills, daily living skills,” Gallucio said about the ESN program. “All the things that prepare our kids as much as possible to develop any sort of independent skills, and prepare them for the real world, [so
that] maybe one day they can get a job.”
Sko Joe’s grew out of the Future’s Cafe, the original student-run cafe, at the beginning of this school year. It has been up and running since then, serving teachers and staff who order items. The drinks are picked up by staff or delivered to by students.
“It is the same thing as the Future’s Cafe, but it is elevated in a sense,” Gallucio said. “Me and Lisa … really created lot of good changes in the model, [with] a less simplified menu for the kids. Really emphasize making sure that we are cleaning and taking care of it [the cafe] throughout the week.”
Now, a semester in, both Gallucio and Jauregui said they have seen positive effects on the students.
“Their math is mostly about money. And to see them apply that in a real world setting is great,” Jauregui said.
The students shop for items across the street at Town and Country.
“We’ll take inventory, and then … the kids and us will go to Trader Joe’s. They will shop for everything. They’ll look for the best prices, best deals,” Gallucio said.
According to Gallucio, the students learn many valuable skills running the cafe, which they do themselves.
“For being professional, we have our kids work in the cash register,” Gallucio said. “So when someone comes in, we prompt them like, ‘Hey, we got a new customer coming in.’ And then you see more often, the kids get more comfortable recognizing those triggers, recognizing, ‘oh, there’s a person, I need to say good morning.’”
Gallucio also commented on the food served at the cafe.
“We’ve gotten a pretty high praise on cinnamon rolls,” he said.
For instructional aide Edward Tonga, his favorite part of seeing the students working at the Cafe is the relationships that they build with each other and with staff.
“Seeing the interaction with the kids and with the teachers and students as they serve, [is a highlight],” he said.
The preparation for Sko Joe’s starts early in the week. According to Galluccio the students take inventory on Tuesdays, and set up the cafe on Thursdays.
“They get everything set up so that they can come in on Friday and just, like, push the buttons and get it rolling,” he said.
According to Tonga, a typical day at Sko Joe’s starts by getting the food ready.
“We start off with laying out what we have to, then we put on aprons, washing hands. We actually have things done the day before,” Tonga said. “When we come in on Friday, all we do is just turn it [the coffee maker] on and get the water going.”
Gallucio says he is pleased with how Sko Joe’s Cafe is going.
“[The students are] running a business with our support, but it’s all student-run, which is the goal,” Gallucio said.
