The following section explains some issues unique to Maya for macOS, and suggests workarounds.
Folders in the project folder beginning with a bullet character cause Maya not to start
If you have a folder in your /Users/username/Documents/maya/projects folder that has a bullet character (option 8) in its name, Maya will not retain the project as it is set. It will return to the default the next time Maya is run.
Workaround
Remove the problem folder or rename it and restart Maya.