Almost every student in the BSM community uses some type of social media to keep up with friends and family. Some of the most popular of these platforms are Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. Although initially geared towards younger audiences, Instagram is now used by all ages, including members of the BSM staff, such as: football coach Mr. Joe Creer, social studies teacher Ms. Megan Kern, and football coach Mr. Jake Ingalls.

Creer joined Instagram around four years ago, amassing 307 followers in his time on the platform. Creer admits to clicking to Instagram whenever a notification pops up on his phone. He decided to join Instagram because he got tired of ninth graders creating accounts under his name. “On it, they would use my quotes from that day,” Creer said.

When he first joined, he would post videos for his workouts. “When I first started, I posted my workouts and like videos of my workouts…For holidays, I take pictures of the kids,” Creer said.

Instagram has been a way for him to stay in tune with the students and his kids, and he likes that he can see where people are traveling and see what they are up to.

One thing he doesn’t like about the app is the lack of authenticity of some of the people. “I don’t like the fact that you get hackers that try to be your friend on it,” Creer said.

Though he is not a big Instagram filter user, he is a frequent hashtag user. “My favorite hashtag has to be #coachdirtyD,” Creer said.

Kern is relatively new to Instagram. She decided to join Instagram because her kids were already on it or were planning to join. “I just wanted to see what it was and I think as a teacher, you have a responsibility to expose yourself and learn about what the students you teach to an extent what they are doing,” Kern said.

She follows a lot of travel, earth pictures, and National Geographic accounts, so she enjoys seeing pictures of places around the world. “I go on Instagram daily, but I don’t fake go to the bathroom so I can go check my Instagram…It is also a fun way to see what friends or former students are doing,” Kern said.

While many think social media is a good use of their time, some think otherwise. “It is a waste of my time, I am not doing anything productive but sometimes that’s important,” Kern said.

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Unlike Creer, she is not a big hashtag user, but there is one former student that always posts with his cats, and then she will use hashtags. “One former student always posted with his cats and so any hashtag I use is critical to him and his weird love for his cat Jooj,” Kern said.

Ingalls has been on Instagram the longest. With an impressive 460 followers, he joined Instagram when he was in college. He likes that it is a good way to stay connected and stay and up to date on current trends, but also thinks it’s a time waster. “You will find yourself looking on Instagram and then looking up at the clock and realize you’ve just wasted 20 minutes of your life,” Ingalls said.

He also got it because all of his friends did. “It was senior year of college, and everyone was getting one, so I did too,” Ingalls said.

Though social media is often considered something of a young person’s game, many adults in the BSM community choose to be a part of these platforms. No matter whether people think apps like Instagram are a waste of time or not, it’s clear that they are a popular way for sharing and keeping in touch with friends and family.