Susanne Masi worked as a botanist at the Chicago Botanic Garden from 1991 to 2013, where she co-founded and managed Plants of Concern (POC), a citizen science-based rare plant monitoring program. Prior to her career as a botanist, Susanne worked for nine years at Mundelein College with Continuing Education students; during this time she had the good fortune to be both a colleague of Sister Jean Schmidt and also on her academic advising staff. Since retirement, in addition to volunteering for POC, she has been on the Illinois Native Plant Society Board since 2016 and is currently Vice President. Susanne served on the Illinois Endangered Species Protection Board for 12 years and is currently on the Board’s Endangered Species Technical Advisory Committee for the review of the Illinois’ endangered and threatened plants. Susanne co-authored The Sunflower Family in the Upper Midwest with Thomas M. Antonio. She received Masters degrees from Northwestern University and Northeastern Illinois Universities. Susanne lives in Algonquin, Illinois, with her husband Domenico D’Alessandro, and she delights in five grandchildren.