A series of NLO polyamides based on the new monomer 2’,5’-diamino-4-(dimethylamino)-4’nitrostilbene (DDANS) has been synthesized. The polymers are amorphous and show glass transition temperatures up to 206-degrees-C. They can easily be processed by spin-coating into thin films of optical quality. These film have been oriented by a corona discharge poling process. Second-order nonlinear optical coefficients (d33) of up to approximately 40 pm/V at a fundamental wavelength of 1542 nm have been measured. Preliminary results indicate that the orientation of the dipoles shows no significant relaxation at ambient conditions in 120 days after poling. These polymers represent a new approach to the design of polymers with large and stable second-order nonlinear optical properties, where the nonlinear optical units are fixed in the polymer backbone with their dipole moments oriented transverse to the main chain.