More than four decades after Ed McCann ’81 left the halls of Bonner, he still remembers the teachers.
There was Father Atkinson, his senior-year religion teacher, with his wry sense of humor and dedication to showing up at seemingly every sporting event. And Brother Jack Stagliano, who taught art appreciation to a room full of teenage boys, somehow captivating their attention in Renaissance art and architecture.
In fact, Brother Jack made such an impression that after Ed finally traveled to Florence in 2022, nearly 45 years after taking his class, he decided to track down his former teacher to tell him.
“My wife encouraged me to send him an email,” Ed said. He wrote to thank Brother Jack for instilling in him an appreciation for art and architecture that had stayed with him all those years, and the two had a warm exchange.
It’s one small example of what Ed says was different about his Bonner education: the lessons had a way of staying with you.
Beyond the Textbooks
Ed grew up in Drexel Hill, the oldest of four children, and attended St. Bernadette School before Bonner. Eventually, his younger brother would follow him to Bonner and his two sisters would attend Prendie.
At Bonner, Ed was involved in just about everything. He wrote for the Bonner Bulletin, worked on the yearbook, participated in student government, and competed on the Scott’s Hi-Q team.
But what he remembers most is the way students were treated.
“We were kids, but they treated us like men,” Ed said. “We were held accountable for things, but they had an understanding that we weren’t perfect. We were boys trying to learn how to be adults.”
Underlying it all was another message: what you did with your life mattered.
“There was a real ethic of service to others that was present throughout the school,” he said. “They reiterated that over and over again.”
Carrying Bonner Lessons Forward
After Bonner, Ed attended Boston University, graduating in 1985. He spent the next year as a volunteer coordinator for the Alzheimer’s Disease Association before returning to Philadelphia to attend Temple Law School.
He graduated in 1989 and became an Assistant District Attorney, beginning a career as a prosecutor that has now lasted 37 years.
Today, Ed is First Assistant District Attorney in Montgomery County, where he helps run the day-to-day operations of the office and continues to prosecute homicide cases.
The work has put him alongside families during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. It has also reinforced his belief in accountability tempered by humanity — including the possibility of second, third and sometimes fourth chances.
It’s a perspective that stems from his family, Ed says, but also in what he learned at Bonner.
For many years, Ed has kept a quote from St. Augustine on his desk: “Find out how much God has given you, and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others.”
It’s a sentiment that captures the values instilled in him at Bonner, many years before his work as an attorney began: you are not here only for yourself.
Inspired to Give Back
Ed has supported Bonner & Prendie for more than a decade and now gives through recurring donations every two weeks. But there was a moment that inspired his giving, and the importance became clear.
It came when Bonner & Prendie was in danger of closing.
“That made me really sad,” he said. “I felt like it was going to foreclose opportunities for people to get the same qualities in their education and lives that I did.”
When the decision was made to keep the school open, Ed made a decision of his own. “I thought it was important to me to do whatever I could to support the school.”
Since then, he has watched a new generation of his family experience Bonner & Prendie. His nephew graduated four years ago, and his niece recently graduated. Talking with them convinced him that while the school has evolved and become more diverse, the qualities he valued most are still there.
“They were getting that sense of community and service to others that was instilled in me,” he said. “Also a really good education.”
That is what Ed hopes his regular gifts help preserve and make possible for more students.
“Giving as many kids as possible the same opportunity that I had to get a great education,” he said, “with the backdrop and biggest piece being that whole sense of community and the need to be involved with service.”
More than 40 years after graduating, Ed can trace pieces of his life back to Bonner: the education that prepared him for college and law school, the commitment to service that influenced his career, even the appreciation for art that eventually took him to Florence.
And that is why he continues to give.
“I think it’s a place where you don’t just get an education in learning about things,” Ed said. “You get an education about life and how to be a good person in the world and be concerned about others.”