Maria Frankland

Senior Lecturer of Educational Leadership
College of Education and Human Development

Maria Frankland is a National Board Certified Counselor and Maine certified school counselor with over 20 years of experience in preK-20 education. She is passionate about helping students overcome the short- and long-term impact of childhood adversity. Dr. Frankland’s research interests center around social and emotional learning, community schools and comprehensive district wellness programs, the impact of trauma on students and teachers, and ways in which trauma-informed approaches may support student development, particularly in rural settings. She received the 2022 Best Research Award from the National Rural Education Association and a 2024 Faculty Mentor Impact Award from the University of Maine.

Biddle, C. & Frankland, M. (2024). “Leading ‘Survival Learning’: Rural superintendent leadership during COVID-19.” In White, S., Downey, J., & Fuqua, M. (Eds.) Sharing Leadership Stories in Rural Education. Springer. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-97-8293-2_8

Frankland, M. & Biddle, C. (2023). “They didn’t ask us!” School counselor perception of involvement in superintendent decision-making during crisis schooling. Theory & Practice in Rural Education, 13(2), 1-28. https://tpre.ecu.edu/index.php/tpre/article/view/851

Frankland, M. (2021). Meeting students where they are: Trauma-informed approaches in rural schools. The Rural Educator, 42(2), 51-71. https://doi.org/10.35608/ruraled.v42i2.1243

Fairman, J. C., & Frankland, M. C. (2020). Assessing and supporting students’ social and emotional needs in Maine schools. Retrieved from Orono, ME: http://mepri.maine.edu/posts/

Frankland, M., Mercado, A., & Biddle, C. (2019). Negotiating culturally responsive leadership in remote rural settings. In E. R. Crawford & L. M. Dorner (Eds.), Educational leadership of immigrants: Case studies in times of change. Philadelphia, PA: Routledge.

Frankland, M., & Pelletier-Ayer, S. (2019). Becoming trauma-informed: Risks and responsibilities. Maine Schools in Focus. https://umaine.edu/edhd/2019/10/24/maine-schools-in-focus-becoming-trauma-informed-risks-and-responsibilities/

Mette, I. M., Fairman, J. C., Lech, P., & Frankland, M. C. (2019). Principal and teacher perceptions of performance evaluation and professional growth (PE/PG) system implementation. Retrieved from Orono, ME: http://mepri.maine.edu/posts/

Education

Ph.D. in educational leadership, 2020, University of Maine
M.S. in school counseling, 2016, Husson University
M.S. in human relations, 2015, Husson University
B.S. in biochemistry, 1987, University of Dallas
B.A. in biology, 1987, University of Dallas
Portrait of Maria Frankland
Senior Lecturer of Educational Leadership
Program Coordinator for the Graduate Programs in Educational Leadership