A St. Thomas Academy teacher has been fired after she allegedly sent “inappropriate and concerning” text messages to at least three students, according to the all-male Catholic prep school in Mendota Heights.
The content of the text messages centered around drugs and alcohol, said Mendota Heights Police Chief Kelly McCarthy. The allegations are being investigated, said McCarthy, who added that the teacher has not been arrested.
St. Thomas Academy Headmaster Matthew Mohs said school officials learned Monday about one text sent to a student that “we deemed be inappropriate and concerning.”
School officials initially were not sure who sent the text, but by midday Tuesday “we had enough confidence that we had the right adult and that we should have legitimate concerns about the behavior.”
The school fired the teacher Tuesday.
Citing the ongoing police investigation, Mohs would not release the teacher’s name. This school year was her first teaching at St. Thomas Academy, but it wasn’t her first teaching job, Mohs said.
St. Thomas Academy has 600 students in seventh through 12th grades.