Student Unintentionally Consumes Hard Seltzer from Teacher’s Mug, Resulting in Fall and Head Injury, Authorities and Parents Report

A Utah teacher is under scrutiny after a developmentally delayed student unintentionally drank from the teacher’s stainless steel tumbler, which reportedly contained hard seltzer. The incident, which occurred at a Farmington school, has raised serious concerns among the student’s family and local authorities.

The student, Flor Perry, who has developmental delays, accidentally consumed the alcohol from the tumbler thought to be owned by her teacher, Katherine Meatoga. Flor’s mother, Kim Perry, recounted the troubling episode to local news station KSL, noting that Flor fell and hit her head afterward. “We have no way of knowing how much she actually drank,” Kim Perry said.

Flor, who is 21 but functions at the developmental level of a 2-year-old due to a rare genetic disorder known as 1p36 deletion syndrome, remains nonverbal, making such incidents particularly concerning for her parents.

“We were informed that her teacher was intoxicated during school hours,” Kim Perry stated, expressing her disbelief and frustration.

This is not the first time the Perry family has faced such an ordeal. They previously dealt with an alleged abuse case involving a different teacher at another school in 2022. Now, they find themselves grappling with yet another troubling situation.

“It’s happening again,” said Devin Perry, Flor’s father. “Our daughter has been through this twice. How many other incidents like this are happening without parents being informed?”

Meatoga was arrested and charged with possession or consumption of an alcoholic beverage at school, a class B misdemeanor, in connection with the March 18 hard seltzer incident, KSL reports.

Meatoga was employed by the Vista Education Center in the Davis School District at the time. The district says she has since resigned. A district spokesperson confirmed to KSL that Meatoga was drinking “hard seltzer in a stainless steel tumbler” when Flor “took possession of the employee’s mug” and drank from it.

“The Davis School District and our community have high expectations for educators,” the spokesperson said. “Unfortunately, in this circumstance, an employee violated that trust. We do not tolerate the possession or consumption of alcohol on school premises.”

The district did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for comment Monday.

Flor’s parents say she was adopted from Ecuador when she was 7 after Kim Perry met her while working at an orphanage when Flor was a baby.

“I just fell in love with her,” Kim Perry told KSL. “She had a sweet personality back then.”

Flor’s parents say that while she knows 20 different hand signs that she uses to communicate, it was impossible for the Perrys to know what had happened without being told by local officials.

“The district said they didn’t tell us because they didn’t have a witness report until several days later,” Devin Perry said. “These are vulnerable, nonverbal students who can’t come home and say, ‘Hey, something weird happened at school today.’ We’re trusting that the district is taking care of them and being open with us about things that occur.”

Meatoga is due to appear in court on May 5.