Dr. Gilson has authored or co-authored numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters in special education and disability studies. She was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study higher education for students with disabilities in Hong Kong in 2006. Dr. Gilson, who is blind, teaches English to blind adults in China using Voice over IP (VOIP), and has mentored youth with disabilities in Germany, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, and the United States. She received a B.S.W. from Illinois State University and an M.S.W. and Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.