Hickory – Few things go together better than college and coffee. Matriculating midtermers at Lenoir Rhyne University got the chance to test that theory recently when the University City Commission sponsored a Study Break at Taste Full Beans Coffeehouse in downtown Hickory.
Nearly 100 students preparing for midterms took advantage of the opportunity and descended upon Taste Full Beans for coffee and cramming. Taste Full Beans owner and Lenoir Rhyne professor, Scott Owens, commented that, “It seemed at times more ‘break’ than ‘study,’ but the books stayed open, and the coffee and conversations kept flowing for much longer than typical study sessions.”
The City of Hickory established the University City Commission for the purpose of creating a “town gown” relationship between the city and LRU. They approached Taste Full Beans because they knew many LR students were already familiar with the downtown coffee shop. Taste Full Beans embraced the idea and added gifts of chocolate covered espresso beans as a special bonus for first time LR student patrons.
The commission consists of representatives from LR, the city, Hickory Downtown Development Association, and the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce. Plans are already underway to create other inter-community study break opportunities in the coming months as well.
