Encouraged by her loving and progressive parents, Effat Yousefi was inspired as a child to always be of service to others and her community. The daughter of a high ranking colonel in the army of Shah Pahlavi, Mrs. Yousefi grew up in a unique household that valued education as well as endeavors of art and culture. For four decades, Mrs. Effat Yousefi has worked tirelessly in endeavors of Iranian culture, art, and heritage. In 1989, she began working with Ferdosi Foundation Persian Language School, where she oversaw numerous Norooz celebrations for the Persian community. The following year, she helped establish the Persian Center Community for Iranians through the Persian Center. In 1998, Mrs. Yousefi founded the Ferdosi Society of Northern California, where she continues to serve as President. FSNC is a nonprofit organization which aims to facilitate the reading and understanding of the Shahnameh, the great literary work of Ferdosi, the master poet, thinker, and humanitarian of the tenth century Iran. Mrs. Yousefi also assisted in archiving ancient Persian literature texts and books at Stanford University's Green Library from 2008 until 2010 as well as the Martin Luther King Library from 1995 until 2010. Her philanthropic ventures for enriching, preserving, and celebrating Iranian culture in many forms spans across numerous organizations. Since 2004, Mrs. Yousefi has been a part of the Iranian Scholarship Foundation, an organization providing university scholarships to promising Iranian-American students. She was a member of the Iranian Federated Women's Club for six years, and led a group with Payvand which provided group therapy for grieving parents who had lost children, providing a space for comfort, connection, and healing. Since 2017, Effat has served as part of the advisory board of Roya Foundation, focused on building schools and opportunities for disadvantaged people and communities in Iran. In celebration of her decades of service and achievements for the community, Effat Yousefi was honored as Woman of the Century by the California Women's Club in the year 2000. Since 2007, she has also volunteered annually as inspector for Santa Clara County elections. Mrs. Yousefi holds a Masters in Psychology from San Jose State University. She is happily married and the mother of two daughters. She speaks French and loves traveling with her family whenever possible.