Campus Celebrity Interview: DeAndre!

Frostburg is a school with a thriving community and a deep connection between students. The community in Frostburg, though, would not be the same if not for some of the major players who, with their friendliness, help bring the community together. People who know almost everyone’s name, and in turn everyone’s knows their name. The Campus Celebrities series, of which this is the first, intends to highlight these characters, and to encourage the student body to understand them more thoroughly.



DeAndre Cook is, amongst Frostburg students, a renowned Starbucks drink virtuoso. If you have ever gone to the Starbucks in the Lane Center, you’ve likely seen him there. He was the Frostburg mascot via Wikipedia for 30 seconds and is fully caught up on the One Piece manga; he really has it all! I took to interviewing him because of his locally known fame and charm.



Paige: What is your major, year, and do you belong to any other clubs or factions here?

DeAndre: I graduated, but I was in two Greek orgs, Psi Sigma Pi, Pi Mu Alpha, and then the team manager of softball.

Paige: How long have you been working at Starbucks?

DeAndre: It’ll be three years come August.

Paige: Why have you worked there so long?

DeAndre: It’s right here. It’s a two-minute walk from my house. I can still do softball or ensembles over in PAC.

Paige: I didn’t know you frequented PAC!

DeAndre: Not this semester, just softball. I did when I was here because there’s no other trombone players.

Paige: Do you feel like your job connects you deeper into campus life?

DeAndre: Yeah, I know all the drama! I’m planted there for 8 hours a day, so people come up to me and they’re telling me stuff and I’m just like, OK. They’re like, “DeAndre I had a bad day,” I go, “Why?” they go “This happened!” So and so got arrested, got fired, and so on. So I’m always like, tell me!

Paige: Do you know their names or do they just spring this on you?

DeAndre: I know most of their names

Paige: You’re good at memorizing names!

DeAndre: Well, this one time this one girl scared me, she walked up and was like, “Hey DeAndre.” I thought it was one of my friends and I turned around and it was this girl I’ve never seen before. They know who I am though, no more incognito mode.

Paige: Cause you’re a celebrity?

DeAndre: I suppose! I can’t go anywhere, I walk somewhere, you’ve seen it, and they go hey DeAndre! And I go, hey! It used to be ‘Starbucks guy’ before they learned my name.

Paige: What is the most commonly ordered drink?

DeAndre: I’ve converted a lot of people, but I’m pretty sure before that it was a white mocha, but I think I’ve converted people to my refresher. Cause it was cold, right, but now it’s getting hot outside so my little mango dragon fruit with peach lemonade and sweetener has gotten popular.

Paige: What is the easiest drink to make?

DeAndre: Iced chai. I can make that in 15 seconds

Paige: What is the hardest drink to make?

DeAndre: (sigh) The most annoying one is the caramel ribbon crunch. I don’t like it. It’s just so many steps. A lot of people stop ordering it when I’m there now, they’ll come up and see my face and go, ‘I’m sorry!’ I feel bad, though, I don’t mean it. It just slows down the line and normally I’m there by myself

Paige: Do you see trends in how certain groups of students get drinks?

DeAndre: I can tell when it’s finals week! When the theatre has their show week, you guys start ordering medicine balls, I hear people ordering them, and I say, “Okay, so it’s tech week.” Or, like when it’s game day all the lacrosse players come up and get their refreshers. So, I always know what’s going on based off their drinks.

Paige: So you’re like in the know!

DeAndre: I’m in the know!

Paige: Do you find yourself having many interactions with Frostburg higher ups?

DeAndre: The president knows my name! Jefferey Graham knows my name too, and he goes like, hey Deandre! I go, hey! I know when he has meetings because he walks in and gets his coffee, so I know!

Paige: Do you have any other Starbucks secrets you’d like to share?

Deandre: No, you can’t have secrets! We’d be here all day!