New York student gets suspended for bringing coffee to class. Her fight over the school’s new rule is now bigger than latte

In a bizarre incident, a high school senior in New York faced suspension for bringing a cup of coffee to class. But the bigger issue was not really the coffee. The student challenged the school because administrators had apparently introduced a new rule banning or restricting outside food and drinks without properly informing students, parents or the public about the policy, reports The New York Post.

The student, identified as Julie Kaputa, said that on her last first day of school when a teacher confronted her over her Cup of Joe on September 3 at Beaver River Central School in Castorland, NY. “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 WTVM.

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Julie Kaputa, an honours student preparing to graduate, was given an in-school suspension after bringing a latte to class. School officials said the drink violated a new section of the district’s Code of Conduct designed to “create a safe, instruction-focused environment for all students.”

But the student, Julie Kaputa, challenged the school over how the policy was introduced. She argued that the district had adopted the new outside food and drink rule without holding the required public hearing.

Julie’s mother, Mary Anne Kaputa, raised the issue publicly after being called to the school. “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 Kaputa wrote on Facebook.

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Mother questions whether policy was properly adopted

Mary Anne Kaputa then asked other parents whether they had seen any notice about a public hearing concerning the new student code. She said meeting minutes from July and August, when the policy may have been discussed, had not been posted on the district’s website until she raised the issue. She also said the district office had no record of a public hearing being held.

“I am certain that the school can not enforce a substantial change to the code of conduct without a public hearing,” she stated. The new rule was included in the district’s 2026-2027 Standards for Community-Wide Conduct and applies to middle and high school students.

The district said the food and drink rules were intended to reduce distractions, protect students with food allergies and create a calmer school environment. “The following food and drink guidelines help minimize distractions, protect students with food allergies, and promote a calm, equitable school experience,” the policy states. Under the rule concerning food from outside vendors, students arriving at school with food or drinks are told to finish them before entering the building.

Student was allowed back to class with her coffee

After Kaputa questioned school officials about the rule and how it had been adopted, administrators allowed her to return to class with the coffee, according to her mother.

“Glad that we have reasonable and rational administrators that are willing to listen….with some prompting…” Mary Anne Kaputa said.

The school board is now expected to revisit the issue at its next meeting. A public hearing will be held on the new outside food and drink policy, with students also being asked to provide feedback.

“They will be holding a public hearing at the next board meeting and asking several students to have input into rewriting this section of the code to address both the administrator and student concerns,” Mary Anne Kaputa said.

“There was no public hearing to discuss it. Transparency in government is a big thing that I care about a lot, and it just kind of struck me as odd that there wasn’t a public hearing,” the senior told the outlet. She also said the in-school suspension would not appear on her student record.