A female Utah teacher has been accused of raping a 17-year-old female student. Courtney Louise Jarrell, a 22-year-old math teacher and coach of the sophomore girls' basketball team at Riverton High School in Utah, has been accused of engaging in sexual encounters with a 17-year-old girl, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Courtney Louise Jarrell has been charged with first-degree rape and second-degree forcible sexual abuse. Jarrell has been suspended on administrative leave from the Jordan, Utah School District since the rape allegations emerged in March. Jarrell resigned permanently when an investigation by police uncovered more specific details about the relationship and alleged sexual encounter, which took place at at Jarrell's house.

According to Jordan School District spokesperson Sandra Riesgraf, "We immediately looked into it, and within hours of the complaint, she was suspended, and everything was turned over to Draper police. We felt that it was something that rose to that level."

The case alleges that Jarrell touched the victim's breasts and genitals while the student was visiting the teacher's Salt Lake County, Utah home. The incident allegedly took place sometime between February and March, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.

Jarrell's attorney is claiming Jarrell resigned from the school in order to be able clear her name, rather than as an implied admission of guilt, despite the seriousness of the allegations of the 17-year-old former student.

Jarrell had been working within the Jordan School District for less than a year. Despite this, before the incident she was considered one of Riverton High School's most popular, beloved teachers. Student Kathryn Orchard told reporters, "Everybody loved her. My parents were even way shocked because my parents loved her too. They thought she was a great teacher."

Jarrell is slated to appear in court on May 16.