She received her PhD in costume and textile history and has been an active scholar in both design and history for the past twenty years. She was a professor for 12 years at Iowa State University before joining the TAM faculty. In addition to her academic career, Dr. Parsons worked as an apparel designer, and as a theater costume designer and draper in the Washington, D.C. area. Dr. Parsons is the current president of the Midwestern Region of the Costume Society of America.