Education

• University of South Carolina, Ph.D., 2002
  (Area of Specialization: School Psychology; APA-approved program)
• University of South Carolina, M.A. + 30, 1994
• University of Florida, B.S., 1989

Biography

Maria Hernández Finch earned her doctorate in 2002. At Ball State, she is the director of the Educational Specialist (EdS) and Masters (MA) Programs in School Psychology. She directs the EdS internships and is a research faculty fellow with the Ball State Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder. She also coordinates the practica experiences for the school psychology EdS and Doctoral programs and is the faculty advisor for the BSU chapter of APA Division 16’s Student Affiliates in School Psychology (SASP). Dr. Hernández Finch teaches many applied courses in school psychology including School Practicum and Practicum in Consultation. She also periodically teaches immersive development courses in the community and online human development.

Research Interest

• Psychological Assessment
• Diversity Scholarship & Methodology
• Gifted and Twice Exceptional Learners
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Psychological Consultation

Professional Activities:

Selected Awards & Honors

• Ball State Office of Institutional Diversity Recognition for Diversity Research 2015
• Ball State University Teachers College Outstanding Service Award 2014
• Ball State University Department of Educational Psychology Outstanding Service Award 2014

Selected National/International Service

American Psychological Association

• BSU SASP (Division 16) Faculty Advisor 2011-Present

American Education Research Association
National Association of School Psychologists
National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI).

• Elected to the Board of Directors for Delaware County (Fall 2015-Present).
• Appointed as chair of the NAMI School Suicide Prevention Subcommittee for Delaware County (Summer 2015-through Present).
• Appointed Delaware regional representative to the Indiana Suicide Prevention Coalition (Fall 2015-Present)

National Association of Multicultural Educators (through 2014)

• Editorial Board Member Psychology in the Schools
• Editorial Board Member Clinical Case Studies and Reviews
• Editorial Board Member Journal of Clinical Case Studies

Ad Hoc Reviewer Gifted Child Quarterly
Ad Hoc Reviewer Educational and Psychological Measurement
Ad Hoc Reviewer Educational Psychology: An International Journal of
Experimental Educational Psychology
Ad Hoc Reviewer Journal Of Educational and Psychological Consultation
& Special Issue Guest Co-Editor Multicultural Competence in Consultation
Training (Expected release 2016)
Ad Hoc Reviewer Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Publications (* Denotes graduate student co-author)

1. Finch, W. H., Hernandez Finch, M. E., & Singh, M.* (in press). Data imputation algorithms for mixed variable types: An application in large scale educational assessment. Journal of Quantitative Research in Education.
2. Sander, J. B., Hernández Finch, M. E., & Newell, M. N. (in press). Introduction to special issue on multicultural competence in consultation. Journal of Educational & Psychological Consultation.
3. Finch, W.H., Hernández Finch, M. E., & French, B.F. (in press). Recursive partitioning To identify potential causes of differential item functioning in cross-national data. International Journal of Testing.
4. Hernández Finch, M. E., Maughan, E., Finch, W. H., McIntosh, C., & Thomas, C. (2015). Enhancing collaboration between school nurses and school psychologists when providing a continuum of care for children with medical needs. Psychology in the Schools, 52, 635-647.
5. Sander, J. B., Hernández Finch, M. E., Pierson, E. E., Bishop, J. A.*, German, R. L.*, & Wilmoth, C. E.* (2015). School-based consultation: Training challenges, solutions and building cultural competence. Journal of Educational & Psychological Consultation.
6. Finch, W. H., Hernandez Finch, M.E., & Moss, L.* (2014). Dimension reduction regression techniques for high dimensional data.  Multiple Linear Regression Viewpoints, 40(2), 1-15.
7. Hernández Finch, M. E., Speirs Neumeister, K., Burney, V., Cook, A. L.* (2014) The relationship of cognitive and executive functioning with achievement in gifted kindergarten children. Gifted Child Quarterly, 58, 167-182.
8. Dale, B. A.*, Hernández Finch, M. E., McIntosh, D. E., Finch, W. H., & Rothlisberg, B.  (2014). Utility of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales, Fifth Edition with ethnically diverse preschoolers. Psychology in the Schools, 51, 581-590
9. Finch, W. H., & Hernández Finch, M. E. (2014). Differential item functioning analysis  using a multilevel Rasch mixture model:  Investigating the impact of disability status and receipt of testing accommodations.  Journal of Applied Measurement, 15(2), 133-151.
10. Finch, W. H., & Hernández Finch, M. E. (2013). Investigation of specific learning  disability and testing accommodations based differential item functioning using a multilevel multidimensional mixture item response theory model. Educational and Psychological Measurement. 73, 973-993.
11. Hernández Finch, M. E. (2012).  Special considerations with response to intervention (RtI) and instruction for students with diverse backgrounds. Psychology in the Schools. 49, 285-296.

Book Chapters

• Zimmerman, A. E.*, & Hernández Finch, M. E. (2013). Mathematics Disorder and  Dyscalculia: A Case Study. In A. S. Davis (Ed.) Psychopathology of Childhood and Adolescence: A Neuropsychological Approach. Springer.