Edward Bernard Rooney was born in Buffalo, New York on July 21, 1900, to James and Ellen Carmody Rooney. He was educated at Holy Family Parochial School and Canisius High School in Buffalo, graduating in 1918. Immediately following graduation, he entered the Jesuit order at Woodstock-on-Hudson in Yonkers, NY. From 1922 to 1925 Rooney attended Woodstock College, achieving his BA in 1924 and his master's in philosophy in 1925. That same year, he began his professional career as an instructor of Classics at Regis High School, where he taught from 1925-1928. He began his PhD in Gregorian Theology at St. Jean Berchmans Theological College in Louvain, Belgium in 1928, and completed it at the Gregorian University in Rome, Italy in 1932. During his doctoral studies, he was ordained to the priesthood at Milltown Park in Dublin, Ireland (1931).

After the completion of his PhD, Rooney returned to the United States to begin his tertianship at St. Andrews-on-Hudson in Poughkeepsie, NY, which he completed the following year (1933). From 1933-1935 he served as Professor of Ethics at St. Joseph’s College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania before taking up a post with the newly-formed Jesuit Educational Association (JEA), where he would serve for nearly thirty years, moving from the Middle Division in 1936 to regional director before becoming president of the association in 1937.

Concurrently to his presidency, he was the liaison for the JEA to the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA). In the 1950s, he served both bodies as a delegate to international education congresses, including the Inter-American Confederation of Catholic Education (Confederación Interamericana de Educación Católica, CIEC), the International Association of Universities, and the Catholic International Education Office (Office International de l'Enseignement Catholique, OIEC). In 1962, Rooney began representing the OIEC as an observer to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and he was elected to the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Inter-American Education Association.

After retiring from the JEA in 1966, Rooney expanded his international Catholic education work. For the next few years, he served as Educational Representative for Jesuit Missions, Inc. (1966-1969) and Vice President of the Inter-American Education Association. He also collaborated with the Fédération Internationale des Universités Catholiques (FIUC) on a study of Catholic higher education. From 1969, he was Overseas Education Consultant for the Jesuit Provincials of the American Assistancy and Specialist for International Education, NCEA. Rooney continued to serve as the OIEC permanent representative to the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, which gave him the right to also attend meetings of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). This role also made him part of the Council of NGOs, the International Catholic Organization (ICO) Lounge, and gave him access to the United States Catholic Conference’s Office for UN Affairs and the United States Mission to the UN’s briefings.

Rooney received honorary degrees from Marquette University (1951), Fairfield University (1951), Mount St. Mary’s College (1958), Xavier University (1958), and Loyola University (1962).

Edward B. Rooney died on July 30, 1976.

Sources:

Biographical data, Box 2, Folder 32, Edward B. Rooney, SJ papers, JA.2015.003, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.

Conference of Major Superiors, Box 11, Folder 14, Edward B. Rooney, SJ papers, JA.2015.003, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.

OIEC Council Meeting, Rome, Box 9, Folder 1, Edward B. Rooney, SJ papers, JA.2015.003, John J. Burns Library, Boston College.