Mary Jean Longley

Dr. Mary Jean "MJ" Longley, Inupiaq elder, educator, and advocate for learning in indigenous communities in Alaska and across the country, passed away peacefully on March 3, 2026, in Avondale, Arizona. She was 82 years old.

Mary Jean was born on December 3, 1943, in Nome, Alaska. Her mother, Frances Longley, fostered an unbreakable closeness, sense of humor and strength in her children and encouraged MJ's bright mind and desire to explore the world. From the start of her formal education, she would often be found sitting on the steps of the schoolhouse waiting for it to open.

Growing up as one of eight siblings, Mary Jean loved her family. Her brothers Henry, Gary, Nicholas and Theodore, and her sisters Joan, Fran and Patricia were her foundation. These relationships helped carry her through the challenges of life and drove her to mentor coworkers and students, friends, and family.

Mary Jean's drive took her far beyond Nome. After graduating from Nome High School, she moved to Oregon (for the first time) to be near her sisters Fran and Joan. She also lived briefly in Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and many places before returning to Alaska to have a family of her own.

After motherhood, Mary Jean pursued higher education with a voracious determination earning an undergraduate degree from Portland State University, a master's degree from the University of Alaska, Anchorage, then back to P.S.U. where she received a doctorate in education - all in record time.

Her work was an ongoing source of joy, and she always acknowledged her good fortune to work with First Nations tribes. In addition to family, Mary Jean valued her relationships with her countless colleagues over the years, many of whom became her dear friends. Her intelligence, style, and radiant smile left an indelible impression on everyone she met.

Mary Jean’s personal interests were as vibrant as her personality. She harbored an enduring love for fishing, always catching the largest ones. She played the clarinet in school and had a near limitless memory of the lyrics. Her collection of Native American and Alaska Native art reflected her travels, heritage, and love of The People. In her off time, she loved exercising her mind and body and was always at the gym or reading one of a huge stack of books.

Her courage inspired generations of strong women and men within her family and community to pursue their dreams. And she continued to pursue her own goals in her senior years. In her seventies, she spent time living on the beaches of South America with her eldest daughter, son-in-law, and her first grandchild and their partner before settling in Arizona to be near her sister, Patricia and husband, Cole.

MJ leaves a legacy for the next generation of the powers of determination, hard work, and generosity of spirit. She raised her three children—Gina Pratt, Michelle Toomey, and Bryan Woolcock with the strength of character she epitomized in her own life. Mary Jean grieved the loss of her mother Frances, as well as her siblings Joan, Gary, Henry, and Fran who predeceased her.

Dr. Mary Jean Longley will be remembered as an extraordinary woman whose life was defined by love—for learning, for family, for culture—and by an unwavering dedication to making the world better. May her memory bring comfort to all who knew her. She is likely fishing somewhere in the afterlife, surrounded by her ancestors. She is survived by her children, her nine grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

She will not be forgotten.