Student suspended for practicing civil disobedience: “It was never really about the coffee”
Photo Courtesy of Julia Kaputa
Julie Kaputa, a senior at Beaver River Central School, was suspended for practicing civil disobedience. In September of 2026, Kaputa “received an in-school suspension on the first day of school for violating the school’s outside food and drink rule, a new addition to this year’s code of conduct,” as per WWNYTV. But according to Kaputa, “It was never really about the coffee.”
In an interview with Kaputa, she said, “I got involved in this issue because I was concerned that the administration never held a public hearing. Students and teachers were both caught off guard by the new policy, and I wanted to make sure their voices were heard through the appropriate process.” The lack of a public hearing violates the Dignity for All Students Act in New York State, which states, “Education Law 2801(5.a) requires that a public hearing be held prior to a Board of Education adopting changes to the Code of Conduct,” with the final changes being “developed in collaboration with student, teacher, administrator, and parent and community organizations, as well as with school safety and other school personnel.”
This story has been picked up by news outlets all over; however, headlines and focus have been on Kaputa not dumping out her coffee, as opposed to the issues she has brought to the table. She says her parents’ reaction has been “very surprised so many people are focused on me not dumping out a coffee instead of the school board violating Open Meeting Law.”
According to Local 12 News, “A public hearing [was] expected to take place on September 14.” Prior to this public hearing, Kaputa states “A committee was formed last week with 6 students, 2 teachers and 1 administrator, and we decided we wanted to keep the 2025-2026 language.” However, at the public hearing, “The board did not accept this, and modified the language at the meeting…The student representative on the board was key to making sure our concerns were covered, because they tried to add wording back into the policy we were strongly opposed to and she spoke up and prevented it.” The public hearing was important in this issue, to ensure both students, teachers, and families had a chance to voice their opinions about the potential changes to the Code of Conduct.
Kaputa’s family have been supportive of her decision to pursue this issue. She states, “My parents have supported me by encouraging me to research the issues and stepping in when the administration was overly dismissive.” She says that the school district has not had the minutes of a public meeting posted on the website as required by the Open Meetings Law of New York State. Kaputa said, “At one point, the district office was refusing to release the public meeting minutes to me because I was a student. My parents had to step in and come to the school to get the minutes for me.”
As this issue becomes resolved, the school district is doing their part to help resolve these issues as well. Kaputa is hopeful that this will create more transparency in her school government, saying, “The board has agreed to an open audit of their processes by the NYS Committee on Open Meeting Law to help them bring their policies in line with the law. This is a HUGE step towards increased transparency that I am really happy about.”