Education
- Ph.D., 2010 – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Education, with certificate in Global Health
- M.A., 1997 – New York University, French
- B.A., 1992 – Davidson College, Religion, with concentration in International Studies
Areas of Expertise
- Program Evaluation
- Systems Strengthening
- Technical Assistance
- Resilience
- Prevention Science
- Implementation Science
- Global & Multilingual Literacies
Background
Dr. Mount-Cors brings more than 25 years of global and local experience in school-based research, program evaluation, and direct work with youth to the BRITE team, the Second Step team, and the DIAL team. She holds a Ph.D. in Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she focused on the intersection of literacy, health, and child wellbeing, which resulted in the 2016 publication of her book Global Literacy in Local Learning Contexts: Connecting Home and School. She also holds a Certificate in Global Health from UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, M.A. in French from New York University, and B.A. from Davidson College.
A former K-12 language teacher, Dr. Mount-Cors has spent much of her career rooted in North Carolina. She founded EdIntersect, LLC, a Carrboro-based consulting firm focused on primary and secondary education with governments and local partners in over 20 countries, with funding from USAID, UNICEF, World Bank, Gates Foundation, and other private foundations and NGOs. She has taught courses at UNC on quantitative and qualitative research, teaching methods, and comparative and international education, has served on school improvement teams at Chapel Hill High School, McDougle Middle School, and Carrboro Elementary, and has worked with North Carolina school districts to implement global education and dual language programs, and now to implement suicide prevention, anti-bullying, and resilience programming.
Throughout her career, Dr. Mount-Cors has studied, advocated for, and promoted the understanding that academic success, mental health, and social-emotional wellbeing go hand in hand – for children in rural Mali and coastal Kenya as well as for students in urban and rural North Carolina schools. She brings that commitment and experience to her research at UNC.
Research
MaryFaith Mount-Cors’s research focuses on social-emotional wellbeing, resilience, and youth mental health as well as global literacy and multilingual learners. She has deep expertise building and managing multi-stakeholder partnerships with governments, NGOs, international organizations, and local implementers in sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, Latin America, and North America, translating emerging research and innovation into accessible, equitable solutions deployed at scale in low-resource, low-connectivity environments. A multilingual professional, she has extensive field experience working directly with partner organizations across 15+ countries, including deep engagement over the last decade in the United States, Malawi, Tajikistan, Mali, Cape Verde, Nigeria, Senegal, and Rwanda. She specializes in using qualitative and mixed-methods research and data to inform strategy, measure impact, and drive continuous improvement. Dr. Mount-Cors has spoken on education, literacy, policy and practice issues, organizational strategy, and foreign assistance with multiple news outlets, including Forbes, Bloomberg, News & Observer, NPR, NHK, CNN, Voice of America, and Education Week.