Maria Cantalini-Williams
Academic Partner
Wilfred Laurier University
Maria Cantalini-Williams is the Dean of the Faculty of Education at Wilfred Laurier University. She holds a Doctor of Education degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto in the Department of Applied Psychology. She has conducted large scale research projects in the areas of: innovation in education, collaborative inquiry, early childhood and work-integrated learning models. Throughout her career, Maria has assumed a teacher-researcher model, reflecting on pedagogy and educational practices resulting in numerous professional and academic publications. Most recently, she received the designation of Professor Emerita for her contributions to the Brantford campus of the Schulich School of Education at Nipissing University where she was the Director/Associate Dean of the Laurier-Nipissing Concurrent Education Program and taught in the Bachelor of Education and Graduate Studies programs. Maria also had the privilege to establish the international practicum program in Italy and was the faculty lead for 12 years. Since 2016, she has served as the Chair of a Rideau Hall Foundation Committee working on the Education for Innovation project, designed to develop innovation skills and mindsets in Canadian students.
