As a dancer, choreographer and musician Julie Bata has been researching, teaching and presenting African dance and music traditions since 1993 in the United States, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali and France. She earned a BA in Cultural Anthropology, an MFA in Dance and is currently a dance faculty member at Houston Community College. Throughout her career, she has produced over ten evening length African dance and music productions and numerous community outreach performances that were accessible and relevant to diverse communities. In addition, she has taught at numerous festivals, colleges, schools, and community events and her choreographic work has been commissioned by universities throughout the US. She has been awarded grants from Texas Folklife, the Houston ArtsAlliance, and a research sabbatical from Houston Community College. She recently facilitated pedagogy workshops to young Malian dance artists in Bamako, Mali in collaboration with Kono Ngaga. Her research interests include traditional performing arts as a means of cultural continuity and sustainability, traditional dance and music genres of the former Malian Empire in the nations of Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea and Mali, and best practices for traditional African dance pedagogy.