By Janis Strasser
Anne Walsh Mitchell, a longtime NAEYC Board member and NAEYC’s president from 2006 to 2008, passed away at home on January 31 at age 75.
Throughout her life, Anne advocated for children and those dedicated to their education and care. She was a passionate leader in the field and a staunch supporter of excellence who championed higher wages, uniform standards of quality, and increased federal investments in early childhood education.
Those of us who knew Anne well recognized her as a true Renaissance woman. Colleagues and friends describe her as fierce, no nonsense, a mentor to so many, and a listener. As one friend recalls, she “pushed me to do things beyond what I thought I could do.” I will remember her as the person who encouraged me to pursue graduate studies and become an advocate for young children. She was always the first to jump into the icy lake at our friends’ yearly retreats in the Adirondacks!
Anne graduated from Wellesley College with a bachelor’s degree in astronomy. She received a master’s degree in early childhood administration from the Bank Street College of Education. After college, she volunteered with VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) to help families establish their own child care center in a low-income housing development in Boston. “Those families . . . taught me a lot about life and relationships and perseverance,” she shared in a NAEYC column. After VISTA, she became director of the Norwich Vermont Daycare Center and was soon advocating with the state legislature on behalf of early childhood programs.
Anne was a professor at Bank Street from 1981 to 1991. A sabbatical led her to full-time, freelance consulting and the establishment of Early Childhood Policy Research, the business she operated through 2018.
Anne was a gifted public speaker who conveyed ideas with clarity and passion, excitement and energy. Anyone who attended NAEYC conferences while she was president will surely remember her interactive sessions. She also represented NAEYC at national meetings of early childhood professionals. “Seeing how many of the most dedicated child advocates in America are NAEYC members truly confirmed for me the extent to which our members and our Association are leaders in the important work of ensuring the future of quality child care,” she wrote.
As a resident of Climax, New York, Anne proudly served in a variety of leadership roles and mentored countless early childhood professionals. She shared beautiful relationships with her husband, Phil, her daughter, Amelia, and her grandson, Henry. Her close friends share profound gratitude to Phil for lovingly caring for Anne in these last years.
Janis Strasser is professor emerita at William Paterson University and a former preschool and kindergarten teacher. She now works with preschool teachers on the island of Anguilla. strasserj@wpunj.edu
Photograph: © NAEYC
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