Java Bob's coffee shop has opened in the Bob Jones media center. (Contributed)

On schooldays after 4 p.m., principal Robby Parker is happy to see students in the media center at Bob Jones High School. The students are there by choice.

Java Bob’s, the media center’s new coffee shop, is encouraging students to arrive early and stay late in the library. Media specialists Cindy Huskey and Shane Jones have been waiting for the coffee shop to open since August.

“We’re not talking about a few little pots with sugar and Sweet ‘n Low. We’re talking full service,” Huskey said.

Huskey coordinated an online poll to allow students to name the shop.

Student aides are running Java Bob’s and learning practical business skills and managing inventory. “It’s a great tool for marketing classes. It’s a real-world learning environment,” Parker said.

“Students can buy cappuccino, hot chocolate, iced coffee in two flavors and regular coffee blends with a variety of syrups,” Huskey said. The shop will raise funds for the media center, while serving as a catalyst for students to visit.

Art students will decorate a signboard for Java Bob’s. A chalkboard displays the shop’s special du jour.

“The students feel like they are in Barnes & Noble or Books-a-Million,” Parker said. Whenever visiting one of those bookstores, Parker always sees six or so Bob Jones students. “We want to make this media center to be just as welcoming. We have flexible hours so they can study before school, after school or at different times.”

Parker describes the center’s environment as “wonderful. It smells welcoming.”

All sales are done within regulations. “There are certain times that we can sell certain items, and certain times we can’t,” Parker said.

Parker is pleased with the student traffic. Adults at Bob Jones also are enjoying Java Bob’s. “It’s not a party all day. Teacher use their discretion” in allowing students to visit, he said.

The Bob Jones media center opens at 7:30 a.m. and remains open after the schoolday ends.

“We want it to be community place,” Parker said.