Eluza received her doctorate in Dance from Texas Woman’s University. She was born in Brazil and is Associate Professor of Dance at UNCG. Her research focuses on the cultural origins of contemporary Brazilian concert dance styles. Santos’ artistic and scholarly works have been presented in Brazil, the U.S., South Africa, Portugal, and Canada. She is a co-founder of the Latina Dance Project, a performance-based company exploring the Latina aesthetic in concert, scholarship, and research. Santos also founded and directed Passport Dance Gathering in 2003, a dance concert bringing together local dance artists of diverse ethnic backgrounds. She draws from her cultural roots in her teaching, choreography, and scholarly work.