Francine Lawrence

AFT Vice President
Francine Lawrence has been president of the 3,000-member Toledo Federation of Teachers (TFT) since 1997. She also serves on the AFT Teachers program and policy council, the AFT's No Child Left Behind task force and the executive committee of the Ohio Federation of Teachers. An experienced educator, she was a speech-language pathologist in the Toledo public school system for many years.

As TFT's chief contract negotiator, Lawrence has spearheaded innovative initiatives that break new ground for teachers and unions. Building on the TFT's success with its longstanding peer assistance and review program, Lawrence helped design the district's Toledo Review and Alternative Compensation System (TRACS), which promotes both teacher quality and improved student performance.

Lawrence has been active in her community and state, serving on numerous councils, boards and commissions over the years, including the Lucas County Mental Health Board, Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, Juvenile Justice Advisory Board, and Imagination Station. She chaired the 1990 United Way of Greater Toledo campaign. Lawrence recently co-chaired The Ohio 8, an alliance of superintendents and teacher union presidents from the eight largest urban districts in Ohio.

Active in the labor movement, Lawrence is vice president of the Greater Northwest Ohio Area AFL-CIO Council and is a member of the advisory board of the Northwest Ohio Center for Labor-Management Cooperation.

A licensed speech pathologist, Lawrence holds a Bachelor of Science in speech and hearing therapy and a Master of Arts in speech pathology, both from Bowling Green State University.