Michaela Feinberg is a PhD candidate who specializes in African history. Her research interests include theater, dance, and colonial education in French West Africa. Her dissertation project, titled Choreographing Empire: Theater, Folklore, and Colonial Education in Senegal, examines the way that students and teachers established a new artistic tradition in French West Africa during and just after colonial rule. Her work explores how African students and teachers engaged in transnational and cross-cultural discourses within Africa and the diaspora to think critically about colonial rule and establish new artistic practices on their own terms. At Yale, Michaela also works as a Lead Writing Partner at the Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning and as a Graduate Assistant at the Office of Fellowships. She is passionate about helping students develop their writing skills and making academia accessible to all.