Educator Austin LeMay has gone viral on TikTok for his old-school dance skills that he says connects with pupils.
For those of you who haven’t had the chance to meet the California instructor, here’s all the information you need to know about him and the viral film that has been viewed more than 32 million times!
Who is Austin LeMay and why has he gone viral?
Autin is a middle school teacher in California. It’s also said that he serves as Campus Culture Director, ABC reports.
He calls himself a “Teacher. Coach. An avid golfer and a fan of satire. I’m an aspiring chef of the griddle. He just had a baby.
According to his social media posts, Autin looks to be a sports fan, particularly football.
An online video of him dancing to New Boyz’s “You Are A Jerk” garnered more than 32.8 million views in the last week. He has since become an overnight sensation on social media.
This is the first time Austin has done this in 30 years, he tells the network.
As a way to show off their dance skills, the students and teacher get together after class every Friday to share their enthusiasm for the art.
His job and career are teaching, but dancing is his true passion.
The story behind the viral TikTok is interesting
It was Tenaya Middle School’s Resource Counselor Jenny McCauley’s idea to post the video of Austin’s dance to bring “attention to the good things happening at the school.”
The student-staff connection is of “high priority” for the school. Principal Armen Torigian seconds Ms. McCauley.
And, one of Autin’s students, Dereona Thepphakaysone, is the mastermind behind the original video.
She wanted to make things fun at school after the pandemic as things had slowed down. And, what better than dancing with your favorite teacher?
California teacher’s TikTok explored
Austin has more than 93,000 followers on TikTok. It consists of four posts, of which, two are of him dancing.
Most recently, he shared one with his baby daughter, where he’s seen making her dance to the song in his viral video.
The overlay text says, “teaching her young.”
You can explore Autin’s TikTok here.