Mei-Yun Gibson grew up in Denver, Colorado, and attended Eaglecrest High School. She graduated with honors, played club and high school soccer, and was involved in several other school clubs.

Gibson entered Lake Forest College in the fall of 2001 and helped lead the Forester women’s soccer team to a Midwest Conference championship just a few months later. She moved from midfield to defense as a sophomore but sustained a season-ending injury in mid-October. As a junior she scored a career-high four goals as the team played to a 14-4-1 overall record and the first NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Gibson was voted a team captain before the season and the Foresters’ Most Valuable Player at its conclusion. She was also named First Team All-MWC by league coaches and Third Team All-Region by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Lake Forest posted a 14-3-0 overall record and captured another league title with a perfect 9-0-0 mark in conference play during Gibson’s senior season. That year she repeated as the Foresters’ MVP and a First Team All-MWC selection. In addition, she was the first recipient of the league’s MWC Defensive Player of the Year award and the NSCAA made her a First Team All-Region selection and the first All-American in program history. Lake Forest was 48-19-1 overall and 29-6-1 in conference play during her career.

Gibson earned Academic All-MWC honors as a senior, was a three-year recipient of the College’s Scott Fossel Prize, and was a member of Lake Forest’s Senior 25. She was a peer teacher, resident assistant, chapter president of Kappa Delta Pi (Lake Forest’s education honor society), member of the College’s National Education Association, student representative on the school’s Education Advisory Committee, and intramural rugby player. She graduated in 2005 with degrees in history and secondary education.

Post-graduation Gibson taught English and microeconomics at Xi’an International University. As a recipient of a Project Quill Scholarship, she went on to complete graduate work at Northern Illinois University, earning an ESL certification, and began a career in teaching.