Meet Our Teachers & Staff
Maggie Kersten
Instructor/creative director
Maggie grew up dancing in Northwest Indiana before attending Interlochen Arts Academy for High School. She trained in ballet, pointe, modern, contemporary, and jazz. She then moved to Athens to attend Ohio University, and graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor’s of Specialized Studies in Dance and Music. After graduation, Maggie went on to teach dance in Columbus for 6 years. She has worked with children of all ages in dance and non-dance settings since 2014.
Maggie recently graduated with a Masters of Community Dance and a Masters of Arts Administration at Ohio University.
amanda desantos
instructor
Amanda de Santos recently graduated from Ohio University with a Master of Arts Administration, with a specialization in Community Dance. She grew up in Athens, OH where she danced at Factory Street Studio for 15 years. At FSS, she studied modern, ballet, jazz, tap, and composition. Amanda went on to Franklin & Marshall College where she received a BA in Dance. At F&M, she developed a love and passion for improvisation and is always looking for new ideas to explore through the moving body. Amanda has also had the opportunity to study and work at the Centre International de Danse Rick Odums in Paris, France. Currently, Amanda serves on the board at Factory Street, where her love and deep appreciation for FSS and the community continue to grow.
bethany moreland
instructor
Bethany grew up dancing in Columbus, Ohio. She began taking ballet classes at the age of 3 and instantly fell in love. Through high school dance, especially ballet and modern, remained her focus.
After high school she studied Family Sciences and Human Development at The Ohio State University. Bethany then earned her Master’s in Early Childhood Education at Muskingum University. Throughout college dance remained a favorite pastime and stress reliever.
Bethany is currently a 3rd grade teacher at Amesville Elementary. She loves teaching young students the basics of dance. Bethany has been with Factory Street since 2016 and is looking forward to another season at the studio.
Sarah Braun
Instructor
Sarah Braun is an Art History student at Ohio University with a passion for community engagement through the arts. She grew up dancing at Factory Street, and her love of the collaborative spirit and supportive environment fostered there has kept her dancing for 17 years. Sarah is looking forward to her fourth year teaching tappers of all ages!
joei forrest
instructor
Joei Forrest is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance performance and choreography, and a certificate in performing arts health and wellness at Ohio University (2026). She began dancing in 2006 in Cincinnati, Ohio, and has trained in several styles, including tap, clogging, jazz, ballet, modern, contemporary, acrobatics, hip-hop, musical theater, and ballroom. She also danced competitively for eleven years.
Meg mccleary
instructor
Meg McCleary is a junior double major in Dance Performance and Choreography and Communications. She is also in the Ohio Honors College and pursuing a Performing Arts Health and Wellness certificate. Originally from Knoxville, Tennessee, Meg trained at Academy of Dance Arts starting at age 14 in styles such as Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Jazz, Hip-hop, Tap, and Musical Theater. This summer Meg had the opportunity to teach at the Schools Summer Intensive. While at Ohio University, Meg has performed in multiple School of Dance Shows such as Senior Dance Concert (2023,2024), Winter Dance Concert (2024), and Junior Projects (2024). She has also been the recipient of many scholarships for dance and academics. After graduation (2027), Meg hopes to continue teaching and performing.
Chloe Stocksett
instructor
Chloe Stocksett is currently a senior at Ohio University where she is working towards obtaining her BFA in performance and choreography and BS is Psychology. Chloe is from Florence, AL where she started taking dance classes at age 3 and quickly became a competitive competition dancer by age 5 at All Starz Dance Academy. During her time here she also began teaching dance to kids ages 5-18. During high school, Chloe was apart of her the Florence Academy of Fine Arts Company where she trained in various places all over the country. While at Ohio University, she has been involved in various performances with the School of Dance including Senior Dance Concerts, Winter Dance Concerts, and Junior Dance Concerts. Chloe has a passion for teaching dance and creating and enjoys sharing this love with her Factory Street kids!
taylor flenar
intern instructor
Taylor Flenar is currently a junior at Ohio University. She is working towards her BA in dance and BA in anthropology. Taylor grew up dancing recreationally in Celina, Ohio and has been dancing for ten years. During high school, her dance practice was focused on ballet alongside contemporary, jazz, and musical theater. While at Ohio University, Taylor has really enjoyed diving into modern dance and has been a part of many performances here, including Senior Dance Concerts (2023, 2024), Junior Projects (2024, 2025) , and the Winter Dance Concert (2024). Aside from dance, she loves her cats, being outside, crafting, and iced lattes. Taylor is so excited and grateful to be interning at FSS this year!
tresa randall
instructor
Tresa Randall is a dancer-artist-scholar-educator with more than twenty-five years of experience teaching dance in community and university settings to children, teens, and adults. She is an Associate Professor at Ohio University, where she directs the Honors Tutorial program in Dance Studies and serves as chair of the master’s degree in Community Dance. Before coming to Athens, she danced professionally in New York, Philadelphia, and Santa Fe. Tresa has presented her choreography at American College Dance Festival, Dancing One Soul, Temple University, Hamilton College, and the Center for Contemporary Art in Santa Fe. As a dance historian, she presents and publishes work on dance modernism through international conferences and publications. Tresa was honored to serve on the Factory Street Studio Board of Directors for eleven years, including four years as President. During that time, she helped to create the FSS-School of Dance Teaching Artist Internship Program.
Christi Camper Moore
Instructor
Christi has a diverse background as a dance educator, administrator, and choreographer. She has been teaching dance for over 25 years in various settings including public schools, community spaces, private studios, and higher education. She taught her first dance classes for Factory Street in the mid 1990’s! Although she remained connected over the years, she returned to regular teaching at the studio in 2013.
Christi is an Associate Professor of Dance at Ohio University, where she also heads the Master of Arts Administration program. Her professional choreography has been presented at venues in Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina. She also regularly collaborates with colleagues in theater and has choreographed numerous main stage musicals. As a dance scholar, Christi’s research focuses on pedagogy; she explores how dance training, curriculum, and community shape a student’s identity within the context of their studies. She contributes to the field through original research, international presentations, and publications.
Regardless of the class or age group she is teaching, Christi loves working with students to amplify their learning experiences and collaboratively explore their unique dance goals and interests.
Ashley joy sarver
instructor
Ashley Joy Sarver has been social dancing, training, performing, and teaching for nearly 20 years, in particular East Coast Swing (Jitterbug), Lindy Hop, 20s Charleston, Balboa, Solo Jazz (Soft Shoe Tap), and Blues – as well as Latin-jazz dances like Salsa (On1, On2, and Casino) and Bachata.
Born and raised in Athens, she learned to dance – and developed lifelong friendships – at Factory Street Studio. She considers it the highest honor to have come home to Factory Street, now as a teacher. After college, Ashley moved to San Francisco where she fell in love with partner dancing. She explored dozens of dance styles, social dancing and training daily. As part of professional Salsa and Swing dance teams, she has performed throughout the U.S. and internationally, from New York, Los Angeles, and Vegas – to Paris, Warsaw, Cuba, and Mexico City.
In 2020, Ashley moved home to Athens, and is thrilled to be sharing her passion for social dance with her hometown. She is passionate about nurturing a thriving social-dance community here in Southeastern Ohio. Learn more at www.ashleyteaches.com.
cristina larocca
instructor
Cristina LaRocca (she/her) is an Ohio-based movement artist, choreographer and instructor of dance and yoga. In 2023, She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Ohio University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance and Choreography and a minor in Communication Studies, where she had the opportunity to perform works by, Dr. Tresa Randall, Dr. Christi Camper Moore and Gibney Dance’s Amy Miller, among others. In 2019, she received her 200-hour yoga certification through EmPower Yoga Teaching Training (Youngstown, OH) under the instruction of Melissa Sebes and has been teaching both dance and yoga ever since. Cristina has taught at various dance schools and gyms including, but not limited to, Ballet Western Reserve (Youngstown, Oh), Ohio University (Athens, Oh), The Movement Project (Fairview Park, Oh), Youngstown Gymnastics Center, Epic Dance Complex (Canfield, Oh), and The Pennsylvania Dance Company (Sharon, Pa). Cristina was a company member with The Movement Project for their 2023-2024 season, where she taught masterclasses, summer intensives, outreach and School of Dance classes. In addition to teaching at TMP, Cristina performed works by choreographers Megan Gargano, Elyse Morckel, and Liz Conway in various concerts such as Summerworks 2023, Cleveland Dance Festival 2023, Cleveland Dance Festival | Akron Concert Series 2024, and Summerworks 2024. Her most recent choreographic solo work, Thursday’s Child, premiered in Ohio University School of Dance’s “However, For Now” (2023). Other recent works of Cristina’s include, As Our Paths Cross, (2022), With Love, (2022) and a lonely embrace (2021). Cristina recently moved back to Athens, Ohio and is looking forward to her first season teaching at Factory Street Studio!
Abby mattlin
instructor
Abby Mattlin is a senior at Ohio University. She is working towards her Bachelor's in Psychology with a minor in Performance and Choreography. Abby is from Cleveland, Ohio where she grew up dancing ever since she was 4 years old. She trained in various of styles of dance such as Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Contemporary, Musical Theater, Hip-Hop, Ballroom, Lyrical, and Heels. She has been teaching dance for about 5 years now with ages 6-18. Some performance moments she has been a part of include, preforming with the Moscow Ballet of the Nutcracker at Cleveland’s Music Hall, dancing at a Kent-State University basketball game, and performing at a final concert at Tri-C community college. Aside from dance Abby enjoys yoga, the outdoors, and chai tea lattes! Teaching dance is a huge passion of hers, and she is so grateful for her opportunity here at FSS!
Hallee cremeans
instructor
Hallee is a senior at Ohio University, majoring in Dance Performance and Choreography. Originally from Athens, Ohio, she spent 10 years training at Factory Street. She now shares her passion for dance as a teacher for FSS. After an exciting experience with commercial dance in Los Angeles, Hallee is eager to graduate and pursue her career in both teaching and performing.
Factory Street Studio is proud to partner with Ohio University’s School of Dance for a one of a kind internship experience. For more information, visit https://www.ohio.edu/experience-ohio/factory-street-studio