Dr. Stewart received her Ph.D. in educational administration and her M.S. in curriculum and instruction from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She is currently an associate professor in the School of Education at McKendree University. In addition, she serves as the Principal Preparation Program Coordinator. Dr. Stewart retired from Benton Consolidated High School in 2015 after serving as the superintendent there for 14 years. In 2014, she was named the Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA) Superintendent of the Year. During her principalship at Carterville Grade School, the school was named one of the Top 10 Schools for Tech Integration by Business Week and McGraw Hill Publishing. Dr. Stewart was a member of the inaugural class for the IASA School for Advanced Leadership (ISAL). She then served as a coach for ISAL II and III.

She has presented numerous trainings for teachers, Administrator Academies, and motivational speeches since her retirement from K-12 education. She is a certified trainer for The Power of Positive Leadership, The Power of Positive Teams, and The Energy Bus. Also, in addition to training several cohorts of instructional coaches she serves as a coach for administrators.