Dr. Maria is currently the Chair of Special Education Department. She is Associate Professor of Special Education at the United Arab Emirates University since August 2020. Before joining UAEU she was a Senior Lecturer in BG University in UK teaching at the Graduate Program in Special Education and Inclusion. She holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the Faculty of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Sciences, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, and also a European Master in Psychomotor Therapy for Children (KU Leuven, Belgium) and a Master in Human Performance (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece). Dr. Maria’s research interests are in Motor Behavior and Assessment and Diagnostical Procedures for children with emotional, behavioral and developmental disorders.

Dr. Maria is an active researcher with international cooperation in Research for more than 15 years in the field of Special Education, Psychomotor and Child Psychology. She is the author of 5 books in Special Education and she has published many research articles in peer review journals. She is a Core Member of the EFP (European Framework in Psychomotor) in Research and she acts as Editorial Board member and Senior reviewer for several per review journals in the field of Education.