AFT Vice President
James F. Dougherty has served as president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers since October 2001.  At the 2003 IFT Convention, he was elected to another term as president of the 90,000-member union by acclamation. He comes to the position with decades of professional and labor union experience.

Dougherty retired in June 2001 from a 36-year career as biology teacher at Niles North High School in Skokie. In 2000, students at the high school selected Dougherty as Teacher of the Year.

Prior to taking office at the IFT, Dougherty served as president of the North Suburban Teachers Union, Local 1274, for 21 years. The veteran activist is recognized statewide as a union leader, having served as a member of the IFT Executive Board since 1983 and as a member of the IFT Executive Committee since 1985. He was elected to the American Federation of Teachers Executive Council at the 2002 AFT convention. He also serves on the Executive Board of the Illinois AFL-CIO

The new president is a strong advocate for increased state funding of public education and high academic standards. Dougherty believes that the only way to achieve high standards is to attract and retain quality teachers by treating them — and paying them — like the professionals they are.

He believes that teacher unionism is an effective tool to better the working lives of professionals and improve the schools in which they work. He also is committed to the union playing a pivotal role in professional development for its members.

Dougherty lives in Evanston, Ill. with his wife, Mary. They are the parents of six grown children.