Yumi Hiroshima joined APARC in April 1997 after spending a year in Chiba, Japan, teaching English for AEON Corporation. After graduating from the University of California, Davis with a B.A. in economics, she worked for an international transportation and logistics company in San Francisco as an accountant. In September 1999, she became the program coordinator for APARC, in charge of the Center's public and private events. In April 2001, she became the Center's manager of corporate relations.