Teacher investigated for Instagram post

(1/3)Teacher investigated for Instagram post

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ESTANCIA, N.M. (KRQE) - A New Mexico school district has been investigated after a teacher posted a picture of her student on social media and called him her 'man crush.'

The Estancia School District wouldn't confirm any specifics but said they recently looked into allegations of inappropriate communication between a teacher and student.

News 13 obtained a screenshot of the incident on the photo app Instagram. Computer teacher Brenda Tapia posted a photo of a student and said he was her 'MCM' - which stands for Man Crush Monday. She called him an 'amazing cowboy,' an 'all around caring person' - and ended the post with a heart. The student wrote back saying, 'I love you, Mrs. T.'

'Man Crush Monday' is an Instagram hashtag used when some people post pictures of their favorite guys and write about them. In Instagram, the #mcm posts aren't always about a literal crush. Sometimes they're used to give that person a kudos.

This is the latest incident in a string of controversial social media posts by local educators.

'There's very much of a merging of personal and professional lives online,' said UNM Social Media instructor Benson Hendrix.

Hendrix says people in areas of influence need to remember it's not just their friends who will see their social media posts.

'When you share tweets or other information on social media, you really need to be aware that not everyone may understand the context you mean that in,' he said.

The district would not confirm if the teacher has been disciplined, but sources say she was suspended.