Amanda Downs

Owner/Director
Competition Director/Choreographer
Jazz, Ballet, Tap, Modern, Lyrical, pointe, hip hop, Contemporary

Amanda Began dancing as a young child in Farmington, she fell in love with dancing and acting and went on to pursue this career on a dance/theater scholarship at NMSU. During her time in Las Cruces, she performed and participated in 3 dance companies. She became the President of a student run, pro-am dance company, Dancers Unlimited, where she began to fine-tune her choreographic skills and choreographed over 100 dances. She also made amazing dance contacts, many of whom she continues to work with. She received degrees in Family and Child Sciences, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Dance Performance and Education. Dance is Amanda's true passion, she wants to share this with any person young or old. Amanda is excited to start her 8th year with Dance Connection as its NEW owner. 

Amelia Henson

Office manager

Amelia joined Dance Connection staff in February 2018. She grew up in the Farmington area, after high school she moved to Texas where she earned a bachelors degree in Childhood Development and  opened a daycare/preschool to serve military family needs. She moved back to Farmington to be closer to family and friends. She enjoys being around children and watching them grow into the people they are meant to be. She enjoys helping people in general and is excited to continue managing the office at DC! Amelia enjoys time with her family and pets when she is not at work, and is excited to welcome her second child due in August!

Martha Rempe

Instructor/Competition Choreographer 

Tap, Jazz, Ballet

Martha Rempe has been a dance instructor with Dance Connection for the past nine years.  Originally from Roswell, she fell in love with dance when she was 4 and continued to dance through childhood and in college at New Mexico State University.  In 2000, Martha tap danced her way to the Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City as Miss New Mexico.  Tap is her favorite style!  Martha has a Bachelor of Community Health Education from NMSU and a Master of Arts in Elementary Education from UNM. In addition to her instruction time at Dance Connection, she is also an elementary teacher with Farmington Municipal Schools.  She is married to James, a Sergeant with the New Mexico State Police and has two children, Victoria and Christopher.    Martha continues to pursue her passion for dance by attending dance teacher conferences and workshops as often as possible. 

Tammy Lucero

Instructor

Tap, Jazz, Ballet

Tammy began dancing as a child in Ohio, taking ballet and tap classes. She rediscovered her passion for dance as an adult and joined the San Juan College Dance Program taking classes in ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, belly dancing and even some Latin for over 10 years. 
Tammy truly enjoys working with children at D.C.  They keep her young and she loves to share all that she has gained from the many different classes and instructors she has experienced over the years. She is happy to continue teaching another year with DC; she has been an instructor since the first year DC opened 10 years ago!

Lauren Laws

Instructor 

Ballet, Tap

Lauren was born in Lynchburg, Virginia and as a young child moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where she grew up. She began dancing at the age of 5 and quickly fell in love with ballet. She has been trained in a variety of styles such as lyrical, jazz, and ballet. She attended New Mexico State University and was a member of Dancer’s Unlimited from 2002 to 2006. Upon graduation, Lauren went into the education field and is currently an Administrator at an elementary school. She has always been dedicated to teaching young children. Lauren is passionate about dance and its ability to empower people in a positive and uplifting manner. She loves helping students learn to express themselves through dance. She is looking forward to her second year at DC!

Chandler Paxson

Instructor

Tumbling, Gymnastics, conditioning

Chandler was born in Oklahoma raised in Farmington. He has been coaching tumbling for ten years, six of which have been full time. Chandler is a USAG certified professional coach; which allows him to work with collegiate and Olympic gymnasts giving him opportunities in both coaching and learning from the best of the best. Coaching is Chandler's passion, he takes great pride in watching students learn new skills and achieving things they never thought they could do. He loves to instill an excitment for tumbling and respect in students. Chandler is looking forward to his second year with DC!

Cesar Ramos

Instructor

Hip Hop

Cesar has been dancing since age 11. He feels dance is a perfect outlet for people who are active and enjoy creativity. He grew up running around outside with his siblings and friends, they used their imagination to create amazing worlds and characters. Dance allows him to continue this childhood past time. He enjoys escaping into a dance character wether created by him or another choreographer. Dance brings Cesar a great amount of joy, which is why he loves to dance and enjoys the opportunity to share this love with others through teaching and performing! This is Cesar's first year as an instructor, he is happy to start his teaching career and continue to train and grow as a dancer.

Josiah Brooks

Instructor

Hip hop

Josiah has been dancing since the age of 8. He loves to dance because it gives him a sense of accomplishment and happiness. He uses performance to escape from the world and enjoy music and movement feeling free. He is excited to continue teaching and sharing his excitement about dance with other young dancers. This is Josiah's first year teaching at DC and is thrilled to start this experience and continue to train as a dancer. 

Abby Watson

Student instructor

Ballet/Tap Basics 1

Abby has been dancing 11 years, most of them on Dance Connection's Competition Team. Dance has been a passion for Abby since she was a little girl. She loves to share her knowledge and love of dance with younger dancers. This is Abby's second year as a student teacher and she is excited to meet new students!

Brooke Sandoval

Instructor 

Jazz, pom, cheer, hip hop

Brooke has been dancing on and off her whole life. She  was a Kelly green in high school and enjoyed performing and competing.  This is her first year teaching at DC and she is super excited! She enjoys the opportunity to get to teach the future of dance and watch them grow into talented human beings. 

Reina Cotie

Instructor

Jazz, pom, cheer, hip hop

Reina Cotie has been dancing for 15 years, 4 of those spent as a Farmington High School Kelly Green. She was coached by the coach of the CSU dance team.She also has training in gymnastics. This will be her first year teaching at DC & she is so excited to be working with young dancers, helping them find their love of dance and having a ton of fun in class! 

Whitney Castor

Instructor 

Ballet , Tap

Whitney has been dancing since the age of 3 and loves everything about it. She taught dance for three years prior to this experience and is looking forward to sharing her passion for dance at D.C! When she is not instructing dance she teaches fifth grade in Farmington and spends most of her time outside with family and animals! She is excited for this year of teaching at DC and meeting new faces!

Ryan Chavez

Competition Manager/ choreographer

hip hop, jazz funk, jazz, contemporary

Ryan is a professional actor who currently resides in both LA & Phoenix, and performs on a carnival cruise ship 9 months out of the year.  Ryan grew up in Silver City, NM where he began dancing as a child and loved performing. He attended college at New Mexico State University and took classes in the dance department and also became a member of Dancers Unlimited. Ryan choreographed several pieces for Dancers Unlimited and performed in several shows. Ryan loves all styles of dance, though Jazz Funk and contemporary are his favorite. He has been part of the competition team as a coach since 2014 and is excited to continue sharing his energy and love of dance with DC!!

Julian Rodriguez

Competition manager/ Choreographer

hip hop, jazz funk, jazz, contemporary

Julian resides in Las Cruces NM and works in a family business as well as instructing dance in several different settings. Julian began dancing in High School and enjoyed sharing his passion and love of dance through performing. Julian attended New Mexico State University where he studied dance through both the dance department as well as Dancers Unlimited where he choreographed and performed in several pieces during his time in the Company. Julian joined Dance Connection's Competition Team as a coach in 2014. Julian is passionate about dance and dance education, he feels growth as a performer is something that should never stop and he is excited to continue to share this with DC!!