SUSAN UYEMURA
Chief Executive Officer

Susan (Shoho) Uyemura was born in Los Angeles and raised in Orange County, California. She attended California State University, Fullerton and graduated in 1988 with a Bachelors degree in Art with an emphasis in computer graphic design. Uyemura worked in Hollywood on various movies and television shows as a professional graphic artist for 12 years. Ms. Uyemura volunteered at the Japanese American National Museum as a docent and participated in the Visions for Keiro program in the late 80s and early 90s. It was around that time when she decided to leave her career in design and move into a career that would contribute to the community. In 2002, she was the first student to be awarded the Master of Science degree in Gerontology from California State University, Fullerton. She is currently finishing her Master’s degree in Oral History.

Currently, Uyemura is a Research Technician / Gerontology Project Coordinator at the Institute of Gerontology at California State University, Fullerton. She is responsible for working with community organizations, conducting research that benefits the elderly and working with on-campus as well as off-campus organizations and groups to educate the public about Gerontology. In addition, Susan is the co-founder of Japanese American Living Legacy (JALL) a non-profit organization formed in 2006. The Japanese American Living Legacy organization is a non-profit group whose mission it is to preserve the historical memories and experiences of Japanese Americans in developing the history of our community in this country.

Uyemura is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton three times over as well as a graduate of the American Society on Aging’s New Ventures in Leadership (NVL) Program. Currently, Susan chairs the Student Peer Group and is a member of the American Society on Aging’s Board of Directors. She also sits on the board of founding members of the Gerontology Alumni Association at California State University, Fullerton. Susan teaches undergraduate courses for Asian American Studies at CSUF and is an active member of the Japanese American Korean War Veterans, Americans of Japanese Ancestry World War II Memorial Alliance, Korean Military Intelligence Service, Hawaii Pacific Gerontological Society, Ex POW’s of Hawaii, and other various community organizations.