Amy Bartner

Indianapolis Star

The high school principal of a student who posted a photo with a racial slur directed at an Indianapolis Colts cheerleader is apologizing for "one student's actions."

A Kokomo area high school principal is apologizing for "one student's actions" after the student posted on social media a photo with a racial slur directed at an Indianapolis Colts cheerleader.

Western High School Principal Rick Davis said the student shared the photo with a small number of people on Snapchat, but it quickly went viral after a screenshot of the photo was posted to Facebook and shared more than 1,000 times.

"We are so incredibly sorry to everyone who has been hurt by this message and this mistake that this student made," Davis said Monday. "That student and everyone else associated with it, especially the cheerleader, is dealing with the fallout."

Because the student is a minor, Davis would not comment on the specific disciplinary action taken but said it was "significant and severe."

The photo was taken Wednesday afternoon at the high school in Russiaville, Ind., during an event to celebrate the school's participation in the Colts Leadership Challenge blood donation program with the Indiana Blood Center. Two Colts cheerleaders, one of whom is black, went to the high school about 60 miles north of Indianapolis for the schoolwide event. The 17-year-old student is on the right in the photo, smiled with another student, posing on either side of the cheerleaders. He posted the photo with the caption "Of course [other student's name] put me next to the [racial slur]." The 17-year-old student is on the right in the photo, another student is on the left and the two cheerleaders are between them. The 17-year-old posted the photo with the caption, "Of course [other student's name] put me next to the [racial slur]."

Davis said the school was shocked.

"It was actually a very positive, great celebration that unfortunately was tarnished by this one student's actions," Davis said. "That is not who we are or what we represent. It’s an unexpected punch in the gut. How could one of our students do this?"

Davis said he has had multiple conversations with the student since and said the student was "incredibly remorseful, disappointed in himself, heartbroken, ashamed, devastated."

"He is really struggling with the result of all this," he said, adding that his family is concerned for his safety after he has received physical threats. Police were notified, he said.

Davis sent a note out to parents Friday to notify them of the photo if they had not already seen it and to encourage them to talk to their children about the post.

The black cheerleader in the photo, Leanna E., said she couldn't believe it when she saw the photo.

"I was just like, oh gosh, like, please tell me this isn't real," she told FOX 59. "And just wanted it to go away."

Leanna said the student apologized to her, and she accepted the apology.

"It's just an act of ignorance, and he’s a kid," she said during the FOX 59 interview. "He made a mistake. I don't think that it was personal. It was just in my nature to forgive him, automatically, and pray for him and pray for everybody who was hurt by it."

The Colts issued this statement last week after the photo went viral:

"The Colts organization is appalled and saddened that one of our cheerleaders was subjected to a racial slur after what had been a tremendous community involvement function earlier this week. We acknowledge the young man’s apology and take him at his word that he has learned that thoughtless and hurtful acts can have severe consequences. The Colts do not tolerate any member of our organization being subjected to any form of bigotry and will take every reasonable precaution to protect our people from such misconduct."

It's a learning experience for everyone involved, Leanna said.

"Stop trying to fight hate with hate, and start trying to fight it with love," she said. "My message to him would be to first forgive yourself. Don't be too hard on yourself. You made a mistake, and he apologized for that, and I thank him but to not do it again."

Call Amy Bartner at (317) 444-6752 and follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

He could have been stopped: How one pedophile kept coaching gymnastics