Gussie Yonashiro-Daniels

Gussie Yonashiro-Daniels

  • Career Specialist for Public Service & Social Impact
Office location:
The Aspire Center
Phone
262-551-6553

Biography

Gussie joined the Aspire team in August 2022 after spending the last several years as the CEO of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) in Lake County, Illinois.

Before her time at the YWCA, she worked for the Illinois Park District, Chicago Family Services, Girl Scouts of Milwaukee SE, and the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in various senior leadership positions.

Gussie has a passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion. While with the YMCA, she served as the national director of diversity & inclusion for the YMCA of the United States. In her last year with the YWCA, she grew programs in health equity, anti-racism, and youth development.

She successfully merged the YWCA Lake County with the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago, securing the continuation of programs in Lake County, Ill. for another 100 years.

Gussie received the Chicago Asian Leadership Award from Mayor Daley, City of Chicago, was highlighted by Carthage College in the 150 Years of Carthage Women Celebration in 2019, and was recognized by the Chicago Bears’ Community Leaders program in 2021.

Education

  • Bachelor of Arts — Psychology, Carthage College
  • Masters of Science — Counseling, National Louis University
  • Certificate, Executive Fundraising, Indiana University
  • Certificate, Mediation & Divorce Mediation, Northwestern University

Main responsibilities at Carthage

“A Career Specialist in The Aspire Center is an integrated member of the campus holistic advising team/model, working with faculty, student success advisors, and other colleagues, providing added support to students in order to support their success during and after college. I serve the following majors: psychology, social work, education, criminal justice, environments sciences, geospatial science, international political economy, history, political science, sociology, and pre-law.”

Favorite thing about working at Carthage

“The people at Carthage inspire me and I am looking forward to meeting the students and staff. I am a lifelong learner and Carthage is the place for me. I also love the water and can’t wait to jump into the Carthage pool.”

Other interests?

“I have a passion for reading all types of non-fiction books. I also love to garden.”