Upstate NY high school student suspended for bringing coffee to class

By Geoff Herbert | gherbert@syracuse.comAn Upstate New York high school student says she was suspended after bringing a cup of coffee to class.Julie Kaputa, a senior at Beaver River Central School in Castorland, N.Y., told WWNY that she was stopped by a teacher as she attempted to bring a coffee drink to the first day of school Sept. 3. Kaputa said she was surprised to learn the school had adopted a new policy on outside food and beverages without notifying the public.“I walked in, I had my coffee with me. I got to my first period class and my teacher said, ‘I’m either going to need you to dump that out or consume it on the spot or go down to the office,’” Kaputa told WWNY.Her mother, Mary Anne Kaputa, said that Julie, an honor student, was handed an in-school suspension (ISS) for violating a new Code of Conduct regulation that sought to “create a safe, instruction-focused environment for all students.” She accused the Lewis County school district of illegally changing its policy with no public hearing at the school board’s last meeting in August.“Julie was put in ISS today for refusing to dump out a ‘banned beverage’ (a latte from moving mountains). I was called down to the school,” Mary Anne wrote on Facebook.“Meeting minutes from both July and August (where the code may have been discussed) were never published to the website until today when I pointed it out to the District Office, and the district office had no record of a public hearing being conducted,” she continued. “I am certain that the school can not enforce a substantial change to the code of conduct without a public hearing.”On Thursday, Beaver River Central School District Superintendent Todd Green said updates to the Code of Conduct are posted publicly prior to the August Board of Education meeting where proposed changes are discussed and voted on following public comments.“Recently, an attentive community member brought a procedural technicality to our attention on the very first day of school. While our annual review process mirrors a public hearing in practice, we acknowledge the advance notice did not explicitly contain the phrase ‘Public Hearing,’ and that the public may not have realized they were entitled to speak on the Code of Conduct before action was taken by the board,” Green wrote in a letter to the community.Green said a formal public hearing would be held Monday, Sept. 14, to discuss the Code of Conduct before the board votes on its official adoption. The previous Code of Conduct is being used in the interim, the notice said.In a public Facebook post, Julie Kaputa said the board of education was required to hold a separate public hearing to change its Code of Conduct. She said it wasn’t the first time her district had failed to comply with New York State Open Meeting Laws, and said she told her homeroom teacher in advance that she planned to “practice civil disobedience” to highlight the issue.“I felt strongly that the administration was acting outside of their purview as without a Public Hearing, students, parents, and teachers did not have a chance to voice their opinions prior to the adoption of the new code. NYSED law agrees with this sentiment,” Julie wrote Sunday. “The first day of school I explained why I was practicing civil disobedience in a polite and respectful manner and was placed in ISS until my parent came to the school and reiterated to the administration what I had previously explained. After missing several of my morning classes the administration reluctantly allowed me to return to class with my drink.”According to the New York Post, the new Code of Conduct, which applies to BRCSD middle school and high school students, added a policy barring Food from Outside Vendors. Green told WWNY that the rule aims to promote a safe and distraction-free learning environment.“The following food and drink guidelines help minimize distractions, protect students with food allergies, and promote a calm, equitable school experience,” the 2026-2027 policy states. “Students arriving with drinks or food will be asked to finish them before entering school.”Some questioned the wording of the policy itself.“Grocery stores are outside vendors, so students aren’t allowed to pack their lunch anymore unless they grew it according to your policy? I believe you might run into some legal challenges with that,” one Facebook user wrote.“Didn’t the school have a bake sale on the 2nd?” another commented.Mary Anne Kaputa told WWNY that Julie’s suspension won’t reflect on her permanent record. Julie said Sunday that they weren’t motivated by the specific policy banning outside food and drink, but concerns about transparency and procedure.“Our family has always promoted transparency in government and proper representation of the people,” Julie wrote on Facebook." This new policy was overly broad, unenforcible, and open to wide interpretation and inconsistent implementation, which is how abuse of power has always started throughout history. I would hope that this encourages students to pay attention to local politics, read documents before signing them, and get curious about their civic rights and responsibilities."Geoff "DeafGeoff" Herbert is a Reporter and Content Supervisor for Advance Local. 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