Yumi Soyu Yamasaki, Ph. D. began Chado studies in the Omotesenke tradition in Japan with her mother in her tearoom, and was licensed as Omotesenke Koushi, Instructorship. When she moved to the U.S.A., there was no Omotesenke establishment. As per the suggestion of her Omotesenke teacher in Japan, she began studying the Urasenke tradition of Chado. Later she intensively studied in the graduate program in Urasenke Gakuen Professional College of Chado in Kyoto, Japan. In 2012 she was granted the certificate of Kyoju, Professorship, in Urasenke tradition of Chado.

She has been teaching in the Urasenke Dojo, Washin-an, in Washington D.C. since its opening in May 2012. She also provides Chado lessons at home in the authentic Japanese tearoom that her husband built.

Her academic pursuits were Cognitive and Neurolinguistics. She received the Doctorate in Philosophy in linguistics, and taught Japanese language and linguistics in University of California in Davis, University of California in Santa Barbara, State University of New York in Buffalo, Canisius high school in Buffalo, DePaul University, and The Monterey Institute of International Studies in Monterey, CA.