Cohorts

Stephanie Franco, Miami FL
Stephanie Franco, mover and creator, embodies dance in all that she does and honors its sacred message, hoping to be a vessel to pass on to generations in the most fruitful way. Franco practices hip hop, freestyle, house, salsa, and krumping. She danced at Miami Dance and Music Academy for 11 years & then at Dance Attack Miami for 9 years, then attended Miami Dade Kendall Campus Dance with Michelle Murray.

Angel Anderson
Angel Anderson is a movement artist from the south suburbs of Chicago.She is a recent graduate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. She is a M’singha Wuti licensed teacher of the Umfundalai technique and has recently received her certificate of completion for finishing her first year of the Africa Diaspora Training at Ecole Des Sables in Toubab Dialaw, Senegal.

Jennifer Rivera
Jennifer Rivera is an emerging professional dance artist based in Miami, FL. She practices Hip-hop and House Dance, and intends to become a historian of Street Dance styles and culture while continuing her professional development in styles she knows and wants to learn about through the incredible faculty and partners of RHU. She has performed at Miami DanceMakers with Adele Myers and Dancers. Rivera attended Miami-Dade College Kendall Campus under the direction of Michelle Grant-Murray and University of the Arts with Kyle and Dinita Clark and received her Bachelors of Fine Arts (2021).

Aya Shabu
Aya Shabu’s goals for her participation in Rennie Harris University are to affirm Black people, their achievements and contributions through community self-knowledge encoded in the in Black dance capable of being decoded by the dancing body as a liberatory strategy. She is committed to becoming proficient in the popular dance styles and cultures of people of African descent in the Americas, Caribbean, and African continent in order that we might liberate ourselves and one another through dance.

Angelica DeLashmette Hurst
Angelica DeLashmette Hurst is a hybrid dance artist who is passionate about Hip-Hop/Street Dance forms and Modern/Contemporary dance forms and lineages. She aims to bring awareness, education, respect, and appreciation for Black vernacular dance through her artistic practice and pedagogical research. She is currently residing in Southern Arizona and is on faculty in the dance programs at Arizona State University, Grand Canyon University, and Scottsdale and Mesa Community Colleges. She is the creator and host of The Artist Arena Podcast, a podcast specifically for professional dance artists, students, and educators working in the dance field/industry.

Genesis Castaneda
Genesis Castaneda primarily practices House Dance and has been dancing with Rennie Harris RHAW since 2022. She performed Lifted! with Rennie Harris Pure Movement at Annenberg in March, 2022. Castaneda studied at University of the Arts and Miami Dade College. Castaneda loves to immerse herself in the history of street dance and believes that a practitioner of Street Dance is someone who understands the movement and academia and can actively practice the standards of the ever-evolving culture that comes with dance.

Sanchel Brown
A highly acclaimed performing and teaching artist, Sanchel began her career in Brooklyn, NY as an apprentice with Urban Bush Women. Sanchel is a 2022 U.S. Hip Hop Cultural Ambassador with Next Level Hip Hop Diplomacy Project. Her performance credits include Let 'Im Move You: This is a Formation (national tour 2021) , World of Dance Philadelphia, The Kimmel Center's 2018 Jazz residency (soloist/choreographer), and Theatre Horizon's Black Nativity (Barrymore Win!). She has been featured in Davido’s Coming to America Tour and Runa’s all natural energy drink commercial. Sanchel holds robust teaching experience and has taught dance workshops across the United States and Senegal, West Africa.

Jasmyn Heralson
Jasmyn (Jay) Haralson is a recent graduate of Sonoma State University, earning her Bachelor of Arts in Dance. During her time at SSU she was able to dip her toes into the different Club and Street styles as well as various euro-centric forms. Haralson has a deep respect and passion for learning the history of Hip-hop culture and dance, as well as the technique. She practices Popping, Locking, Waacking, House, and Party/Social Grooves and has trained with Dynasty Dance Crew (3 years), Urban Bush Women (2 week intensive), and SSU Blue Baronz Dance Crew. In addition to SSU, Haralson has attended Mendocino College (3years) and The Dance Center of Santa Rosa (2 years).

Sheila Russell
Sheila Russell RN, MSN currently lives in the Bay Area on Ohlone land and gives thanks for this often. She is the artistic director of the dance company See Through Soul. Movement Technician, registered nurse, certified doula, massage therapist, Reiki “master”, and certified Compassion Key® practitioner. She has a Master’s of Science in nursing and is working on her second Master's in Nursing. She is a lifelong learner/student. Her biggest joys are her son, family, and friends, whom she loves fiercely.

Pedro Torres
Pedro Torres is a member of The Bronx Boys Bronx Girls Rocking Crew and practices House, Breaking, Rocking, Locking, and Hip Hop. He has been dancing since 1992 and has performed with Fearless Crew at the Festival Internacional Chihuahua 2010. Torres has combined his engineering career with his love for dancing, and started performing in 2010 and teaching in 2008. He has trained at Bboy Hodown workshops, Hip Hop International workshops, Las vegas Locking Camp, Jardy Santiago Online program, 36 Chambaz of stylz, and Rennie Harris University cypher intensive. Torres has created and promoted breaking, all styles, and popping events in his community. He also organizes weekly house dance sessions, where he brings OG's and other dancers to help educate and inspire the new generation of dancers in his city. He looks forward to gaining more in depth knowledge from dance professionals and pioneers in order to continue better educating the new generations.

Anisah Abdullah

Vidya Shaker

Shakia Barron

Penelope Armstead-Williams

Stephanie Sanchez

Farrah McAdam

Darcy Naganuma
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Angelina Labate