Meet Our Team

Jennifer Mueller

Instructor / Director

Jen is a Yoga Alliance® Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT 200), Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher (RCYT) and Registered Prenatal Yoga Teacher (RPYT). She has since trained with Budding Yogis, ChildLight Yoga, Yoga 4 Classrooms, and YoKid to offer classes to families and children of all ages. Jen’s work with children inspired her to complete adult yoga teacher training at Willow Street Yoga in 2010 and train in Prenatal Yoga with Janice Clarfield and Dolphin Yoga. She is also a Certified Educator of Infant Massage (CEIM) through Infant Massage USA and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). When she's not teaching or playing at Breathing Space, you may find her working with families through the Breastfeeding Center for Greater Washington DC or traveling the world with her partner and teen daughter.

Jessica LaGarde

Instructor / Program Administrator

Jessica LaGarde has been teaching creative movement to children in the DC metro area since 2005 and is passionate about helping kids explore their bodies and the world around them. Trained by Joye Newman of Kids’ Moving Company and later certified through ChildLight Yoga, she has taught baby–tween yoga with Breathing Space Family Yoga since 2017, where she also directs camps and supports behind-the-scenes operations. In addition to her movement work, Jessica is a registered massage practitioner and trained infant-massage instructor, with experience teaching at the Potomac Massage Training Institute and maintaining a private practice through Shine Massage & Wellness. Beyond teaching and bodywork, she loves cooking, knitting, gardening, coffee, nonfiction books, and outdoor adventures with her daughter.

Alisha (AJ) Hiskey

Yoga & Yoga Trapeze Instructor

AJ Hiskey, RYT-200, teaches yoga classes for all ages, sharing her passion for yoga, meditation, and mindfulness with children and families throughout the DC area. After completing her Yoga Alliance-certified training in 2018, AJ discovered a love for teaching kids yoga and creating supportive, engaging spaces for students to grow in body and mind.

Outside the studio, AJ enjoys hiking, camping, swimming, and reading in the sunshine. She’s also a dedicated fan of DC sports teams and brings that same encouraging spirit to her classes, always cheering on her students, friends, and family.

Karen Bowman

Early Childhood Instructor

Karen has always loved creativity, play, and working with children, beginning with helping in her mother’s home daycare and babysitting throughout her youth. She discovered yoga at 18 and has maintained a personal practice ever since. After nine years managing a neurology office, Karen returned to childcare following the birth of her child in 2012, working as both a nanny and in-home caregiver.

Since 2019, she has worked as a substitute and teaching assistant at a Montessori school in Washington, DC. Karen holds AMI Montessori 12–18 Orientation training, ABAR certification, and assistant training in Montessori Primary and Atrium settings. Her work reflects a strong commitment to inclusive, child-centered education and mindful learning for young children.

Camille Cobbs

Adult Yoga Instructor

Camille Cobbs began practicing yoga in 2013 after unexpectedly landing in a Level 3 Baptiste Power Flow class in San Francisco. Drawn to both the challenge and sense of community, she continued practicing and found yoga to be a grounding part of daily life, especially during 2020.

Camille completed her yoga teacher training in 2021 and earned her certification in early 2022. Since then, she has taught power-flow yoga classes for adults across the DC area while also returning to her love of early childhood education through kids yoga classes for Pre-K through middle school students. Her classes focus on movement, confidence, self-awareness, and joy.

Elena Tkacheva-Wells

Yoga Instructor

Elena Tkacheva-Wells was born and raised in Russia, where she earned a BA in Professional Acting from the St. Petersburg Academy of Theater Arts. Before moving to the United States in 1993, she worked as a professional actress. Since 1997, Elena has taught creative activities for children, including drama, creative movement, dance, and yoga.

In 2020, she earned her 200-hour yoga teacher certification and has since taught yoga classes for both children and seniors. Elena has long been fascinated by self-expression through movement and the healing power of nature, themes that continue to inspire her teaching.

Outside the studio, Elena enjoys nature, the ocean, books, films, cooking, travel, and exploring different languages and cultures. She is also the proud mother of two children and believes deeply that, in spite of everything, life is beautiful.

Rachel Jamieson

Instructor

Rachel has worked in Early Childhood Care and Education since 2009. She holds a Master’s degree in Early Childhood General and Special Education and is also certified as a postpartum doula. Through her work with children and families, she brings a thoughtful, supportive approach grounded in both professional expertise and care.

Rachel is passionate about helping young children thrive while supporting caregivers in understanding their child’s needs with confidence and clarity. Outside of work, she enjoys training in circus arts, spending time outdoors, and relaxing with her cat, Turnip.

Dira Hansen

Instructor

Dira Hansen is a running coach and lifelong runner who first came to yoga for its physical benefits before developing a deeper connection to its philosophy and mindfulness practices. After completing a transformative 30-day yoga challenge in 2016, she continued studying yoga for years, with a particular focus on Iyengar yoga.

Seeking a meaningful role in supporting families and birthwork, Dira completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training at Yoga District, followed by an 85-hour prenatal yoga certification through Trinatal Yoga School. Drawing from both her athletic background and reflective approach to movement, she teaches slow, mindful yoga classes that combine breathwork, meditation, and intentional movement to help students feel grounded, balanced, and at home in their bodies.

Kathy Foltin

Instructor

Kathy Foltin teaches Yoga Essentials at Breathing Space Family Yoga. Since 2000, she has explored a wide range of yoga traditions, from vigorous flow practices to restorative yoga, and believes there is truly a yoga practice for everyone.

Kathy teaches alignment-based vinyasa yoga classes that encourage students to build confidence, connect breath with movement, and explore mindfulness in a welcoming, supportive environment. Her approach is both encouraging and playful, helping students feel comfortable in their practice while developing strength, balance, and awareness.

She earned her 200-hour yoga teacher certification in 2012 and completed her 500-hour certification in 2018.

Gabriella Gresham

Instructor

Gabriella is an experienced RYT-500 yoga teacher who brings accessible, high-energy yoga classes to children and teens of all ages. Her classes blend mindful movement, creative expression, and playful connection to help students build confidence, curiosity, and joy.

Grounded in yogic philosophy and intentional teaching practices, Gabriella creates supportive spaces where young people can explore movement, self-expression, and community both on and off the mat.

Ebony Wheeler

Instructor

Ebony Wheeler is a certified yoga teacher, sound healer, retreat leader, and Thai Yoga Massage practitioner who has been teaching since 2017. Known throughout the DMV for intelligent sequencing, progressive cueing, and dynamic, accessible classes, she teaches everything from power vinyasa and slow flow to yin, restorative yoga, and yoga nidra. Her teaching blends functional movement with yoga philosophy, breathwork, sound, poetry, and reflection, creating practices that are both physically engaging and deeply intentional.

Shara Morgan

Instructor

Share has been working with Breathing Space since 2018, first as a Counselor and now as a Yoga Instructor and Camp Supervisor. They have also taught middle school Special Education at DC Public Charter Schools, and they have served as a nanny for students as young as 1 year old.

Shara's classes focus on telling stories through movement and learning social emotional skills through play. They’re passionate about encouraging students to tune into and accept their feelings, and to use mindfulness to move through the world with patience and kindness.