Bonnie Mitchell has lived in Ashland for over 45 years. She is serving in her 3rd term as a Trustee of the Ashland Public Library, and is a former Chair. Mitchell served on the Ashland Cultural Council from 2009-2015, and in 2013 was a founding member of Arts! Ashland Alliance, Inc., sponsor of the annual Ashland Dragonfly Festival.
Mitchell began her career at Framingham State University in 1982. She was appointed Library Director in 1998, and Dean of the Library in 2017. Always interested in promoting the arts and culture, Mitchell was a founding member of the Framingham State University Arts and Humanities Council, and served as Committee Chair for over 20 years. She was a member of the FSU Committee for Diversity and Inclusion, and served for 3 years as a First-Year Foundation Program facilitator, teaching life-long learning skills to freshmen.
She served as the Librarian on 4 NEASC accreditation review committees for University’s in New Hampshire, Vermont and Rhode Island. Since retiring from her position as Dean in 2020, she has maintained her connection to the University as a Dean of the Library Emerita, and by working with the current Library Dean to support a Friends of the Library organization. Mitchell also serves on the Advisory Board of the FSU University Community Club, located at the Warren Conference Center in Ashland.
In 2020, Mitchell trained to be a tutor for Literacy Unlimited in Framingham, and continues to provide individual tutor sessions, teaches a weekly conversation class. This summer, she will be teaching a 6-session course to train new tutors. Mitchell serves on the Literacy Unlimited Advisory Board and as Clerk of the Foundation Board. Mitchell is a member of the Remote Area Medical Framingham/Ashland Community Host Group, organizing a health clinic to provide free health services to underserved populations in the local MetroWest communities. In August, 2023, the Clinic was held at Keefe Tech, and will again be held in August, 2024.
In January, Mitchell was hired as the Outreach, Archives and Collections Manager at the Framingham History Center. Mitchell is a 2009 graduate of the MetroWest Leadership Academy and in the 2010-2011 academic year participated in a year-long Massachusetts Public Higher Education Regional Collaborative Leadership Development Program.
Mitchell is a graduate of Long Island University, C.W. Post campus and received a Master of Library and Information Science from Simmons College and a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Framingham State University.
