At Riverside High School, students serve actual customers before many nearby businesses open for the day. Simple Cravings Deli & Gifts operates on school days with food, coffee, pastries, gifts and balloon arrangements prepared and managed through student training. Inventory, display, data processing and customer service become part of the work, and the public can walk in and judge the result directly.
The district serves Chattaroy and surrounding rural and suburban communities north of Spokane. Chattaroy and Riverside elementary schools preserve two early-grade identities, then students come together at Riverside Middle School and Riverside High School. By adolescence, families spread across a broad area share one Ram community for athletics, performances, courses and graduation.
Student enterprises continue beyond the deli. Riverside's screen-printing and embroidery operation takes orders from schools, teams and businesses. Technical courses use 3D modeling, printers, CNC equipment, metalwork and small engines to move ideas into physical prototypes. Biomedical sciences provides another applied route for students drawn to health and laboratory work.
These programs change the relationship between school and community. A local organization can order printed apparel, a resident can buy breakfast from a student crew, and a design can leave the classroom as a usable object. Riverside's high school remains a comprehensive academic and activity center, while its public-facing businesses give students repeated practice with deadlines, quality and people they do not already know.