Jane Russell

I am in my 6th and final year serving as the Secretary-Treasurer of the 100,000+ membership of the Illinois Federation of Teachers. For 25 years, I was President of the West Suburban Teachers Union, Local 571, IFT-AFT, AFL-CIO, which includes K-12 education workers from 16 school districts in western Cook and eastern DuPage counties. I am a delegate to the Chicago Federation of Labor and the recording secretary of the North Central Illinois Labor Council. In 2015, I was honored as the CFL Woman of the Year and have received my 40 year AFT Living Legacy award from the American Federation of Teachers.

I was recently appointed as the IL AFL-CIO CD6 COPE Chair and will be working for endorsed candidates to win their offices.

Many labor union groups have retiree chapters, and I represent the IFT as a Vice-President to the Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans, an organization that advocates for retirees and their families’ health and welfare.