AFT Vice President
Marilyn Stewart has been president of the Chicago Teachers Union and an AFT vice president since 2004. She also serves on the executive board of the Chicago Federation of Labor, representing more than 300 unions in Chicago. At the national level, Stewart is a member of the AFT Teachers program and policy council, and in 2008 she was appointed to the AFT executive committee.

Stewart began her teaching career at the Illinois School for the Deaf in Jacksonville, Ill., where she taught for one year. She spent the next 28 years working with special education students at several elementary schools in the Chicago public school system.

A CTU member since 1976, Stewart was first elected to the CTU house of delegates in 1982 and remained a delegate until becoming president. She has served on the CTU executive board as an elementary vice president and district supervisor and as a delegate to the Illinois Federation of Teachers and AFT conventions.

Stewart has played an active role in the union as a CTU-recommended curriculum writer and has served on a number of committees, including the special education elementary steering committee, professional problems committee and local school council.

Stewart's civic activities and achievements include serving on the Governor's State University Counseling Advisory Board and volunteering as a church and community youth counselor. She was also a recipient of the Whirlwind Talented Teacher Award for Leadership.

Stewart holds a Bachelor of Science in special education for the deaf and hard of hearing from Illinois State University at Normal and a Master of Arts in counseling from Governors State University in Illinois.

(August 22, 2008)