Louise Sundin

Master of Arts, 1991

Louise Sundin, a ninth-grade English teacher, is a local and national leader in education reform, teacher professionalism, labor and workers' rights. Sundin is serving as president of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT) Local 59, a union representing more than 5,000 teachers and educational assistants. She is also vice president of the American Federation of Teachers. As a founding member of TURN (Teacher Union Reform Network), she has helped lead an effort to transform unions into agents of change. In Minneapolis, she has negotiated a model professional contract that includes accountability and professionalism, served on the district's professional leadership and staff development advisory teams, and many other labor/management committees. She also has been a leader in the United Way, Minnesota's Council on Quality and the Minnesota AFL-CIO. She teaches in a collaborative master's program offered by the MFT and St. Thomas.