On Tuesday, May 19, after a full and vibrant life, Dr. Mary Jane Clerkin of Rye passed away. Her husband, John, and children were at her side. She had a long and accomplished career as an award-winning educator, but her family was her most treasured achievement. She was 90 years old.
Mary Jane was born and grew up in Eastchester, N.Y. Her parents were New York State Assemblyman William F. Horan and his wife, Elsie. She graduated with distinction from the Ursuline School and Manhattanville College, class of 1958.
After college, Mary Jane worked for Governor Nelson Rockefeller in his New York office before marrying John and focusing on raising their family.
After her role as a parent juggling various charitable efforts for three different schools, she went back to school herself and received an M.A. in childhood education and an MAT in English from Manhattanville. At her alma mater, Mary Jane also served on the alumni board, receiving a Distinguished Alumni Award in 2003.
She went on to attain a doctoral degree in comparative literature from St. John’s University. Afterwards, she taught and lectured all over the country, specializing in creating innovative distance and online learning curricula for graduate and international students until her retirement eight years ago.
Her work included helping American soldiers deployed in Afghanistan complete their degrees while separated from home by their service. These dedicated efforts and more earned her a United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) Hall of Fame Award in 2014.
Mary Jane and John were married for 65 years, and they were residents of Scarsdale for five decades before moving to Rye in 2023. Mary Jane was a voracious reader, enjoyed entertaining, and loved time at the beach as close to the tideline as she could get.
In addition to her spouse, she is survived by her daughter Suzanne, (Richard) Clary of Rye, John (Denise) Clerkin, Jr. of Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., and Diane Clerkin (Rocco Pozzi) of Bedford; five grandchildren: Grayson Clary (Sophie Nguyen) of Mount Pleasant, Washington, D.C., Taryn Clary (Val Quan) of Manhattan, N.Y., Megan Lundin (Matthew Donaghy) of Yonkers, N.Y., Amy Clerkin, and John Clerkin III of Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.; one great-granddaughter, Jane Nguyen-Clary; and many nieces, nephews and friends. She was pre-deceased by a grandson, Jack Lundin.
Mary Jane’s life will be celebrated with a visitation from 4-8 p.m. Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at Graham Funeral Home in Rye. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, May 27, 2026, at The Church of the Resurrection in Rye.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Mary Jane’s honor may be made to the charity of the donor’s choice.
