She is an assistant professor in Film and Media Arts at Temple University and has been an independent film/video maker since the 1980s, focusing particularly on feminist, LGBT, and political activism and issues.

in Communications from Temple University with the short Sojourn, a collaboration with Jimi Lyons, a cinematographer; the film won a Junior Academy Award.

[3][4] She is an alumna of the American Film Institute (AFI) Workshop for Women Directors, Class of 1989-91, where her classmates included Rita Mae Brown and Lyn Goldfarb.

[6][7] Parkerson has received grants from the Independent Television Service, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the AFI as well as a fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation.

[12] Her documentaries feature major African-American figures: jazz musician Betty Carter, musical group Sweet Honey in the Rock, Stonewall riots activist Stormé DeLarverie and writer Audre Lorde, with a particular focus on sexuality and LGBTQ activism in the latter two.