Principal Gayle Ferguson, M. Ed. has been an urban educator within the Dallas Independent School District for thirty one years. She has served as principal, assistant principal, associate principal, and dean of instruction at the middle and high school level, central office coordinator, middle school science teacher, district wide trainer, and adjunct professor. The exposure to students at both the secondary and post-secondary level has afforded her the opportunity to pursue her passion of working with adolescents and adults.

Her most rewarding years have been spent as the principal of Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy, an early college high school. She was the inaugural principal of the Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy when the school opened in 2008. She has been able to play a vital role in the birth, growth, and success of this exciting program. 

Principal Ferguson is a firm believer of generational change through college access. Under her leadership, Gilliam Collegiate Academy is a Texas Education Agency A-rated campus and a 2014 and 2021 Exemplary High Performing National Blue Ribbon School. Ms. Ferguson is a Dallasite and a proud graduate of Prairie View A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and the University of North Texas with a Masters in Education Leadership.