Joseph Rocco Mitchell

Joseph Rocco Mitchell was born in Pittston, PA on February 7, 1941 to Rocco Joseph Mitchell and Margaret Roberts Mitchell. He grew up there and in New York City. After graduating from Cardinal Farley Military Academy in upstate New York in 1957 and receiving a B.A. from Kings College in Wilkes-Barre, PA in 1961, Joe came to Howard County, MD where he began a 32 year career as a high school History Teacher, six years of which were spent at Loyola Blakefield in Baltimore. During this period he earned MA degrees from Loyola and Morgan State Universities. He also met and married Helen Buss, a teaching colleague, in 1964. Their son, Jason Christopher Mitchell, was born in 1970 and is CEO of Bigjar Systems, a computer networking business in Columbia, MD.

In 1993, Joe retired from Centennial High School, which he had helped open in 1977, and over the next two decades developed an interest in Italian Opera, teaching courses on this subject through the Johns Hopkins Evergreen Society, Howard Community College, and Bibelot Books and Music in Pikesville, MD. With his wife of 56 years, Helen Buss Mitchell, he partnered in writing a series of World History and Western Civilization critical thinking readers in the McGraw-Hill Taking Sides series, as well as a lengthy sourcebook, titled The Holocaust: Readings and Interpretations. To celebrate the planned city of Columbia’s 50th anniversary, Joe and David L. Stebenne [a former student, now a professor at Ohio State University] co-wrote New City Upon a Hill: A History of Columbia, MD [The History Press, 2007].

Joe was a gourmet cook and affable host at large and small parties and he was a lover of life. He is survived by his wife Helen and son Jason, a sister and brother-in-law, Sandra and Daniel Kulnis of Gaithersburg, MD, a sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Linda and Gary Krupa of Richmond Virginia, a brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Bill and Linda Graeff of Ellicott City, MD, a cousin, Jane Roberts of Scranton, PA as well as three Grandcats: Oliver, Laertes, and Heisenberg -- all of whom loved him – and he reciprocated. He passed away peacefully at the age of 79 on June 1, 2020.