Gayle Gagliano, founder

​​Gayle Gagliano has long served as a civil rights leader in New Orleans. She has been heavily involved in efforts to provide equal rights to minorities, women, and people with disabilities. Gayle served for nearly two decades as Associate Director and later, Director of University of New Orleans' Training Resource and Assistive Technology Center, which is a leader in innovation and implementation of accessibility for disabled people.

In the mid-1980's, Gayle became involved in the campaign to restore utility regulatory authority to the City Council. During this campaign, she served as the office manager, and met Betty Wisdom, Karen Wimpelberg, and Tom Lowenburg. Over the years, Gayle spent a great amount of time helping the Alliance in its efforts, including serving as Co-President on the Board of Directors along with Lea Young.