By Jay Clampitt, Lauren Wuthrich and Ellie Rinck
The Black Student Union and McConn partnered for the third year in a row to celebrate Black History Month with the specialty Red Velvet Latte.
Latrese Moffitt proposed the idea in 2024 of “Learn a Latte”, where fun facts and quotes would be placed on coffee cups relating to different cultural events and experiences.
To expand upon the idea of “Learn a Latte”, Austin Protsman, McConn general manager, said, “We came up with the idea of, let’s do a thing where the student organizations, who have the goal of doing inclusion and equity work can create a drink with us.”
BSU was chosen to create a drink, and they proposed a Red Velvet Latte. President of the Black Student Union, Daniella Joseph said, “Red velvet cake in itself is considered a soul food of the South, and a lot of the soul food cuisine is thought to be originated from African American cuisine.”
Initially, the drink was topped with a dollop of red whipped cream, but this version was discontinued, and the version we know today was born.
Barista Elena Wright said, “We make them both hot and iced, but it’s a latte that has dark mocha syrup and cheesecake flavored syrup, and then your normal milk, ice, if it takes ice, and then we have our cheesecake flavored whipped cream that we make and top it off with.”
The drink has been a success, selling 221 lattes so far. This month, it ranks eighth among the 40 drinks in the McConn catalog. Both Protsman and Joseph said people ask every Feb. if the drink is returning, showing obvious anticipation for the drink.
Protsman said all profits from the Red Velvet Latte go back to the BSU, with McConn only taking the necessary costs to cover labor and materials.
Protsman said that he wants the money gained from this drink to act as “A shot of adrenaline for the group to help give them some programming money and give them some ground to stand on, as far as like, the logistical money needs in order for a group to function.”
Joseph shared her feelings about having the BSU and Black History Month celebrated on campus.
“It’s definitely very special getting to share part of the African American culture with the larger IWU community, maybe not even in a way they’re totally realizing, but they get to participate in sharing that culture with us, which is really special,” Joseph said. “Especially during the month of Black History Month and remembering the African American culture of America.”
BSU encourages students to immerse themselves in Black History Month and try the Red Velvet Latte at McConn to get a taste of the culture and the importance it holds.
