The Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police (ILACP) selected Evanston Police Department Chief Schenita Stewart as the 2025 ILACP Police Chief of the Year. She’s the first woman to receive this honor.
Honored and humbled
Stewart shifted the focus to others when asked to comment about her award.
“I’m honored and humbled,” she said. “I’m very fortunate to have a great city manager, Luke Stowe. I think it’s easy to work in partnership with his vision and what his goals are for what we do.
“One of the things I was impressed with during our one-on-one interview was, we lined up with what we’re looking for for this city and how to best provide services … when it came to morale, staffing, officer wellness, alternative responses, whatever it was going to be to provide the best for the city, we were in line. And it was his expectation that I would succeed and that I would have his continued support.
“We’re always looking to get better at what we do and providing the best service as one city team to this community. I think that’s another thing he doesn’t get credit for, is that we’re just one city team. He’s continually preaching that to directors and staff members, that the police department doesn’t stand on it’s own, it’s not a silo. We work to provide the best service possible to individuals within the boundaries of the city of Evanston,” Stewart said.
Successes and future plans
Stewart emphasizes transparency and accountability when she talks about EPD.
One accomplishment Stewart referred to was recent data for 2023 that showed 83% of Evanston’s traffic enforcements are related to moving violations that affect safety, such as speeding or driving while using a cellphone. In contrast, 2024 data for Chicago showed 65% of traffic stops there were for “minor infractions” like license violations, an expired registration or lighting violations.
Stewart is excited to enhance the Community Police Academy and hopes to start a group at ETHS. EPD has initiated a conversation with the school district. An active community police academy chapter at ETHS would present a natural avenue for students who want to learn more about policing and also serve as a natural gateway for EPD internships.
The department is still running a bit lean, Stewart said, but there is another new officer starting in two weeks. After that, the department will only be 10 positions short of being fully staffed. Promotions and retirements still continue because everyone pitches in.
Stewart also said that bike safety will be a big focus this year. There will be more officers and command staff on bikes. She noted that Evanston is a bikable city and there will be joint effort to educate everyone in the city — bikers, pedestrians, scooter riders and car drivers — about bike safety.
Acclaim
Stewart has received other accolades since accepting the role of Evanston’s police chief, including Instructor of the Year from The College of DuPage and The Suburban Law Enforcement Academy. The RoundTable found her awards on the bottom shelf of the coffee station in her office. We briefly moved them to the conference table to take a photo.
When asked to comment about Stewart’s ILACP award, Stowe emailed, “We are so proud of Chief Stewart! She has made not only the police department better but has made our entire organization better due to her leadership, dedication, and many talents. Schenita is also very humble and just frankly, an outstanding person.”
Others agree.
Mayor Daniel Biss offered his congratulations in an email. He wrote, “I’m pleased to congratulate Chief Stewart on this well-deserved award. We can see thefruits of her terrific work in improved community-police relations, improved Department morale, and, most importantly, decreased rates of violent crime. Evanston is fortunate to have a leader like her at the helm of our police department.”
A.J. Bailey, deputy director of the ILACP, wrote in an email, “Chief Stewart has transformed her department with visionary leadership, strengthening collaboration, trust, and excellence among officers. Her commitment to officer well-being, transparency, and community engagement has set a new standard in policing.
“Chief Stewart’s resilience and compassion shone during difficult times, leading her department through loss while providing unwavering support. Her contributions extend beyond law enforcement, earning numerous accolades for her service and dedication.”
Nomination process
The Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police created a Police Chief of the Year award in 2015. Bailey said, “It was established to recognize chiefs who have made a significant contribution to not only their communities, their departments, the law enforcement profession as well as the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police.”
Nominations are submitted through Feb. 1 for achievements made during the previous year. A select committee, the board of officers, reviewed nominations and selected Stewart.
Stewart is active in the organization and serves on the Rethinking Responses committee. She will receive the award at a banquet in Lincolnshire on April 25 at the conclusion of the annual ILCAP training conference.
Stewart plans to accept the award in memory of her good friend and mentor, Allan M. Reddins, an Oak Park detective shot in the line of duty on Nov. 29, 2024. Reddins’ son will be in attendance along with Stewart’s mother and her sister, Commander Schonella Stewartof the Oak Park Police Department.
Editor’s note: This story has updated to correct that the cited data on Evanston’s traffic enforcements is from 2023.
