LaTricia Mitchell

LaTricia Mitchell is graduating with a dual- title master of social work and infant mental health from the School of Social Work. She received her undergraduate degree in Africana studies from The College of Wooster. While at Wayne State, Mitchell was involved with the National Association of Social Workers, the National Association of Black Social Workers, the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health and WSU’s Rad(ical) Social Workers.

Mitchell first interned with Big Brothers Big Sisters, working closely with volunteers and families. Her second placement was a position with Michigan Medicine. She served as a direct clinician in psychiatry, seeing minoritized children and caregivers with complex trauma. She provided qualitative coding support to Rebeccah Sokol’s Partners for Youth Safety and Well-Being project throughout the 2021-22 academic year and is currently a student researcher in Carolyn Dayton’s lab, assisting with the “Baby on Board” study. Mitchell recently presented at Wayne State’s Social Work Research Symposium, exploring the significance of depression among the study’s African American fathers.

Mitchell is a member of the Phi Alpha Honor Society and a recipient of the Graduate Professional Scholarship, Annette Sniderman Freedman Scholarship and Deborah Weatherston Scholarship. She recently gave a speech titled “Jumping the Turnstile: On Access and Opportunity.” These reflections were in light of All Women Are Leaders, the annual student award at Michigan Medicine highlighting historically marginalized women in leadership. After receiving her M.S.W. and IMH-DT, Mitchell will continue as a clinician and community worker. She is determined to bring an end to the overdiagnosis of conduct disorders in Black boys as well as the criminalization of culturally informed play and parenting styles.

Mitchell lives as a truth-teller, joy-bringer, abolitionist, faith community leader and lover of stories. Beyond these and other identifiers, she is most grateful to be a daughter, a sibling and a friend to those around her.