Crows Coffee

South Plaza, Colonial Shops

304 E 51st St, Kansas City, MO 64112

I first went to Crows Coffee in January of my sophomore year of high school. Even then, with my infantile coffee palate and minimal familiarity with coffeehouses beyond Starbucks, I could recognize that the shop and the brews were damn good.

Crows has three locations in the metro area: the one I usually visit, which is South of the Country Club Plaza by University of Missouri—Kansas City’s (UMKC) campus, one in Waldo and one in Red Bridge Shopping Center. All three are at least a small hike from Liberty, but I can assure you that the drive is worth it. 

I make an effort to come back to Crows at least a few times a year and usually come every few months in order to try their reliably immaculate seasonal drinks. In the fall, they serve a pumpkin cappuccino that has managed to stay in my top three all-time favorite espresso beverages for a couple of years now. In the earlier winter months, they serve a peppermint mocha and, later, a strawberry white mocha when Valentine’s Day approaches.

On my most recent visit, I picked up the strawberry white mocha. As usual, Crows killed it beverage-wise. Their knack for specialty drinks lies in their minimalist approach to the sugary add-ins, which are a perfect hint of flavor but never overpower the integral espresso flavor of the coffee base. If you’re not one for specialty drinks, Crows’ cappuccino is a great staple, but they carry all the classic drinks you hope to find at a coffee shop – as well as a nice selection of teas. 

Due to COVID-19, seating is quite limited. However, in the few times I’ve gone recently, there have always been a couple of chairs available that I can grab after putting in my order. I highly encourage you to stick around the shop if you can – Crows has a quiet and warm aura that is perfectly conducive to productive study sessions. Every time I head down to Crows with my backpack in tow, I always manage to crank out a good few hours of quality work, which are made far more tolerable with a delectable coffee at my side.

Because it is essentially located on UMKC’s campus, Crows’ patron population is largely composed of college students, meaning you’re more likely than not to be in the company of others looking for a place to study quietly for a few hours. Unlike some other coffee shops I’ve been to, there seems to be an unspoken agreement among customers to keep the volume at a gentle level, which makes it easy to commit to a focused study session or have a quiet conversation with your coffee date. 

Perhaps the best part of Crows is – and this may initially seem shocking – their bathroom. With the clean, cozy design of their main parlor, you don’t expect to walk into the bathroom in the back of the shop to find Sharpie-ridden orange walls. From floor to ceiling, patrons are invited to impart words of wisdom or quick illustrations – though many graffitists don’t quite meet this standard, taking the opportunity to, perhaps cathartically, jot down some swear words or spark some inane political debate. 

However, the fun of the wall is that you can write something with total anonymity and then simply leave. Whether you decide to add your own caffeine-fueled creativity to the wall or just want to take in what others have written, Crows’ bathroom offers unexpectedly perfect conditions for a brief study break.

Unlike many neighborhood coffee shops in the area, Crows’ business hours span a good chunk of the day. The South Plaza and Waldo locations are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., allowing you to hunker down for several hours if you’re looking to chip away at a big workload, grab an early morning coffee before heading to other plans in the city or enjoy a post-dinner beverage. 

If you’re feeling peckish for reliably good coffee and a quiet study space, fly on over to Crows – they’re calling your name.

An endowed chair is an honorary position that grants access to special funding from a donor who wants to assist faculty in maintaining the quality of the academic program. The money is typically used for professional development and research.

There are currently 10 endowed chairs. Positions are initially held for a three-year term, and chairs can be re-elected. The other six endowed chairs are Dr. Calvin Permenter, professor of music; Dr. Donna Gardner, professor and department chair of education; Dr. Elaine Reynolds, professor of history; Dr. Mark J. Walters, professor and department chair of English; Dr. Kenneth D. Alpern, professor of philosophy and Senior Tutor of the Oxbridge Honors Program; and Dr. Blane Baker, professor of physics.

In the past, the donations have given chairs an increased capacity for research and career enhancement opportunities, such as conferences.

“I have used the funds primarily to travel to professional meetings such as the American Association of Physics Teachers summer meeting. At those meetings, I have presented scholarly work done with WJC students to improve physics education. Recently, I have used part of the Hilton funds to set up a laboratory to design, develop and test new protective gear for sports such as baseball and football. Several students are working with me on these new efforts,” said Baker.

Dr. Yuriy Bots

Bots was awarded the title of John W. Boatwright Professor of Economics endowed chair. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s of science degrees in economics in the Ukraine. He later received another master’s of science and a doctorate of philosophy from Purdue University. Bots is currently working on research focused on the importance of service firms in international trade and differential stock markets’ reactions to various types of mergers.

“I will use the money to travel to more and better specialized conferences that otherwise I won’t be able to afford and to present research to get feedback and make good progress in that field. With extra finances, one could consider attending international conferences,” said Bots.

Chasteen was awarded the A. Major and Dorothy Hull Chair of Communication in Business and Leadership. She earned her doctorate of philosophy from the University of Kansas, a master’s of arts from the University of Central Missouri and a bachelor’s of arts from WJC. She teaches Public Relations, Communication Theory, Interpersonal Communication and a Critical Thought and Inquiry Capstone. She is also the advisor to Lambda Pi Eta National Communication Association.  

Dr. Debbie Chasteen

“Since the initial chair is for three years, I am trying to decide how best to use that because I can use it this year or I can use it the next year or the third year. I am planning to go to a conference next year that is more regional. It happens to take place in Omaha, and I go frequently for the central states I am involved in. Some [of] the research interest that I have [are] in public relations and also typically in instructional communication and how we can make communication better for students. So I plan to use the money to travel to this conference and deliver a paper in Omaha and I am hoping that, if I don’t use my funds in the first two years, to be able to go to an international conference because that is much more expensive,” said Chasteen.

Dr. Bhupinder Vohra

Vohra was awarded the Monte Harmon Chair in Biology. He earned his bachelor’s of science in chemistry and biology, a master’s of science in zoology and a doctorate of philosophy in neurobiology of aging from Kurukshaerta University in India. At Jewell, Vohra does research on Parkinson’s disease and whether the early sign of enteric neurodegeneration can be used as an early marker of neurological and neurotoxilcological conditions.

“I will use the money to get more reagents, chemical and biological, and [it] will be used to do more experiments that we cannot do with the limited amount of money we have. I will also be able to buy [a] few more tools for the research,” said Vohra.

Reynolds was awarded the Dr. Burnell Landels Chair in Biology. She earned her doctorate of philosophy in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Oregon. At Jewell, she performs research to determine the genetic relationship between the capacity of an organism’s cells to respond to stress and an organism’s lifespan.

Dr. Rose Reynolds

“I am going to use [the money] to present my research at a conference and present some of the research that my students have been doing, probably the [conference] offered by the American Aging Association. They have an annual conference in the summer. It is a very nice conference to go to because it is about 160 to 200 of the world’s top experts in biology of aging. I’d really enjoy going to that conference because it focuses enough on basic biology that research like mine and my students’ research would really make a big impact, but there is also an emphasis on translational research,” said Reynolds.