Mitchell is serving her fifth 3-year term as an elected member of the Greenville (New York) Board of Education, has served as its president and is now vice president. She completed five years on the State Professional Standards and Practices Board for Teaching appointed by the New York State Board of Regents, and is a Past-President of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. In 2003, Mitchell received the Champion for Children award from the New York State Association for the Education of Young Children. In 2005, Mitchell received the Bank Street College Alumni Association Recognition Award and the Early Childhood Achievement Award from Scholastic, Inc. In 2007, she received the Visionary Award from the National Louis University’s McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership. Mitchell received the 2008 Excellence in Leadership award from the New York State Child Care Coordinating Council. In 2009, Mitchell received the President’s Award from the National Association for Family Child Care.