Veteran and triple-major Mary Tonge leads life of purpose, learning and service

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — For some students, college begins with a clear plan. For others, it becomes a journey shaped by service, sacrifice and second chances. Penn State adult student Mary Tonge’s experience very much reflected the second path.

An adult learner triple-majoring in history, medieval studies and political science with a minor in classics and ancient Mediterranean studies, Tonge, who will graduate in 2028, has built an academic journey rooted in curiosity, determination and purpose.

For Tonge, being an adult learner means bringing every chapter of her life into the classroom with her. Before Penn State, she served 11 years in the U.S. Army, both active duty and with the National Guard — experiences she said taught her discipline, attention to detail, teamwork and leadership. Those lessons continued to shape her long after she left the uniform behind.

Tonge’s path to college was also shaped by responsibility and service. She spent years caring for her parents in the final years of their lives, a role that taught her patience, resilience and strength in a different way. Later, she said, she became an EMT (emergency medical technician), continuing a life built around helping others and learning how to stay calm in moments of crisis.

“When I look at all these identities — student, soldier, employee, Guardsman, caregiver, EMT, mother, grandmother, researcher, historian-in-training — I don’t see contradictions. I see a timeline,” Tonge said.

Tonge’s love of history began early. In high school, she said, doing well in history class could even earn students candy bars. But what started as a fun reward turned into a lifelong passion.

After attending Harrisburg Area Community College and earning a degree in liberal arts, the Delaware County, Pennsylvania, native used scholarship money to continue her education. Political science seemed like a natural choice because she wanted to become a history teacher and was fascinated by the way politics and history shape one another and “merge together,” she said.

Excited to be accepted at Penn State, Tonge started at World Campus before continuing at the University Park campus. Soon after arriving, she discovered medieval studies and said she was immediately drawn to studying how propaganda influenced people in medieval times, long before newspapers or modern media existed. That same interest connected naturally to her studies in classics and ancient Mediterranean studies.

“History and political science help me understand how people got here, why systems work the way they do and how the past still affects the present,” Tonge said. “What I’m getting out of my studies is not just a degree. I’m learning how to ask better questions, listen to different perspectives and use my own experiences to help others see things in a new way.”

Outside the classroom, Tonge has made the most of her Penn State experience. She is involved in the Adult Learners Program and helps plan events, including an upcoming science fiction-themed program.

Tonge also works in Special Collections at Penn State University Libraries, a perfect place to be for a history buff. She has explored collections related to the Civil War, the Vietnam War, the Black Panthers and the Freedom Riders.

Every day offers the chance to uncover something unexpected, said Tonge, describing moments in the archives when she comes across rare materials and thinks, “Wow, this really exists.”

Tonge is also active in the Military Service Organization and the Paterno Fellows Program, where she is currently an aspirant working toward becoming a fellow.

“Those experiences make my perspective as a student different from that of many traditional undergraduates,” Tonge said. “When I participate in class discussions, I draw from lived experience — from public service, family, healthcare, history and the systems that shape people’s lives.”

Some of Tonge’s most meaningful work happens off campus, she said. She works as an EMT in Juniata County, serving communities that have fewer resources than larger cities. The work can range from minor emergencies to life-changing tragedies.

One experience that stayed with Tonge involved responding to a fatal car accident involving a child. What affected her most was helping a grieving family through the worst day of their lives. While dealing with grieving family members was “out of her comfort zone,” it became one of the most impactful moments of her life, she said.

“EMT training reshaped me again,” she said. “It taught me how to stay calm in chaos, how to hold someone’s fear without absorbing it, how to be the steady presence someone needs on their worst day.”

Tonge also makes an impact in the classroom by bringing her life experiences into discussions. In one class debate about whether students should be allowed to use cellphones, she said, many students focused only on distraction. She offered another perspective — that her granddaughter has diabetes and relies on phone access for medical monitoring — while at the same time noting that students should still be present and attentive in class.

Tonge said she also values the people who have supported her along the way. She spoke warmly about professors who have had a positive impact on her, and she enjoys attending campus events such as the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Banquet and the College of the Liberal Arts’ Ice Cream with the Deans event, where she had the opportunity to engage in thoughtful conversations.

“My life has been written in chapters, and Penn State is the chapter where I finally get to bring all of them together,” Tonge said. “Everything I’ve done — the military, caregiving, becoming an EMT, going back to school — shaped how I learn, how I listen and how I see the world. Penn State has given me the space to use those experiences, not hide them.”