Bethany Stewart

Bethany Stewart graduated from Delaware State University with a Bachelor’s of Arts in History and minor in Political Science in the spring of 2012. As an undergraduate, Bethany was an active student that led her college’s cheerleading squad and she also joined the historically Black sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. which emphasizes its motto “Greater Service, Greater Progress.”

With this same passion for service, post-graduation, Bethany moved to Philadelphia to serve as a City Year Philadelphia Corps Member. Within months of beginning this program, Bethany became certain that she was meant to service the city of Philadelphia. Although Bethany gained employment as a civil legal assistant for many years, she ensured that her free time was filled with pursuits of liberation for her fellow Philadelphians. She became a core organizer for the Philadelphia Community Bail Fund, a grassroots organization that advocates for alternatives to present criminal legal system norms. She further advocated for those most affected by mass incarceration by establishing a Participatory Defense hub in South Philadelphia that helps to support those navigating the difficult criminal court system. After five years of working as a civil legal assistant and advancing to a lead legal assistant role, Bethany made a significant career shift by joining the Employment Services team for a Philadelphia non-profit organization that provides housing to formerly homeless populations. In this role, Bethany worked to combine her administrative expertise with the principles of workforce development to design programming and individual employment counseling for formerly homeless young adults. Bethany is now excited to join the Girls, Inc. team as the Training and Partnership Development Coordinator.

Bethany is from North Philadelphia but also grew up in the lovely small town, Middletown, DE. She loves to try new things and is known to “get kinda good” at a lot of things like baking, gardening, and playing music. She is a fierce advocate for marginalized Philadelphians and continues to function as a community activist that works to end systems of oppression, particularly mass incarceration. She is a profound writer and podcaster that hopes to continue working for the liberation of all Philadelphians and all marginalized peoples.