NJCU Partners With Cortaditos Coffee to Provide Retail Management Training for Employees

New Jersey City University has announced a formal educational partnership with Cortaditos Holding Corporation, a veteran- and Hispanic-owned Cuban-style coffee shop chain, to deliver a customized workforce education program for Cortaditos employees.

Cortaditos currently operates six locations, four of which are in Hudson County: the NJCU campus at 2039 John F. Kennedy Boulevard in Jersey City, 7700 Bergenline Ave. in North Bergen, 4501 Park Ave. in Union City, and 600 Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard South in Harrison. The chain also operates locations at American Dream in East Rutherford and 140 Washington Ave. in Belleville. A seventh location in Newark is opening soon.

Under the agreement, NJCU will provide a six-course Retail Management Certificate program covering leadership, supervision, customer service, business finance, and accounting fundamentals. Each course runs six weeks, is delivered asynchronously online, and is supported by weekly in-person sessions on NJCU’s main campus. Between six and ten Cortaditos employees participate per course. Cortaditos funds the program directly at no cost to participants. A dedicated NJCU instructor fluent in Spanish supports all participants.

“This partnership reflects what NJCU’s mission stands for at its core: expanding opportunity and creating meaningful pathways for working professionals to grow,” said NJCU President Andres Acebo.

Cortaditos CEO Adam San Miguel, a 2018 NJCU alumnus and 2025 NJCU Distinguished Graduate Award recipient, said the collaboration reflects a shared commitment to employee development. “At Cortaditos, we consider our greatest asset to be our people, and developing leadership capacity in our company is the best investment we can make in our future,” San Miguel said.

San Miguel also serves as founder and chairman of the Cuban American Alliance for Leadership and Education, which was named Nonprofit of the Year by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey in 2020.

The agreement was signed in November 2025 and includes provisions to continue the program following NJCU’s planned merger with Kean University to form Kean Jersey City in Summer 2026.