She graduated with a BA in political science from the University of Southern Mississippi.
Now a professor,[3] in 2012 she was head of the Department of Political Science, and was named assistant vice president for statewide academic relations at the university.
She was one of Justin Knapp’s professors, and has said she was not surprised by his dedication to editing Wikipedia.
[4][5] Ferguson's research includes comparing the structures of state-level government institutions in the United States[6][7] and analyzing legislative procedures.
[10][11] In 2015 a book she edited, The Executive Branch of State Government: People, Process, and Politics, is in the collections of more than 700 libraries.