
Cle Letha Shaw
2023 Woman of the Year
Cle Letha Shaw has been a member of the Chicago Chapter for six years. She has been Publications Chair, Vice-President, Convention Committee member, and is now Chapter President. While President, the Chapter has launched its first Scholarship Program. For the 2022 Convention, Cle created and moderated the 'Breaking the Glass Ceiling" panel discussion, coordinated the logistics for the pre-convention tour and created the center pieces, and secured Metra's Train and Crew Dispatch Operations Center Director, Greg Godfrey, to be a guest speaker. In the Community, she participated in Chapter welfare projects including the Ronald McDonald House, Making Strides Breast Cancer Walk, Chicago Food Depository, and Knight Ministries, as well as fundraisers. She has recruited several members. Cle supports the Epilepsy Foundation, volunteers at Mt. Olive Baptist Church, sorting and distributing clothing to the homeless and underserved. She donates items to the homeless shelter "The Mission" and has cooked food for the "Tent City”. Cle has 25 years of railroad service, beginning at Norfolk Southern. She held positions of Track Standing Order Clerk, In and Out Gate Clerk, Notifications Clerk, and Tower Operator. Cle broke the glass ceiling in the latter position by becoming the first African American female to qualify as a Tower Operator at Landers Yard. For the last 21 years, she has worked at Metra. She was a crew caller for 15 years, then moved into her current position as Manager-Crew Management. Cle manages 15 employees, leading a department that staffs over 1800 trains daily. She is a member of the Chicago Railroad Superintendent's Association (CRSA), where she was 73 Secretary and is currently Vice President. Cle was selected as a Railway Age Magazine's 2022 "Women in Rail" Award recipient. She was inducted into Metra's first “Women's Hall of Fame". Cle is the mother of two, a grandmother of 11, sister to two siblings, and an aunt. She is chairwoman of the Chicago Committee for her family reunion and has raised money to award four $2,000 scholarships per year for family members.

