Harrisburg school district denies charges in receivership petition, says students may fall under “external management”

June 12, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

A recent meeting of the Harrisburg school board

The Harrisburg school district today responded to a state petition seeking to place the district into receivership, denying numerous charges and stating that the district’s 2013 recovery plan could compel the state to place students “under external management.”

In his 31-page response, district Solicitor James Ellison took issue with the charges leveled against the district by the state Department of Education.

In his response, Ellison repeatedly denied claims made in a petition last week by education Secretary Pedro Rivera, which included that the district allegedly failed to meet student achievement targets and allegedly failed to fulfill key initiatives in the 2013 financial recovery plan.

Ellison’s response repeatedly stated the district has followed both the law and the directives of the district’s state-appointed chief recovery officers.

“The District hereby affirmatively represents that it has performed its statutory obligations under the Financial Recovery Law as well as the Second Amended Plan passed by its Board of School Directors on May 31, 2016 as confirmed by Exhibit 8 of the Petition, and substantially (if not fully) complied with all directives issued by its assigned chief recovery officers related to the governing recovery plan applicable during their respective tenure,” Ellison wrote in response to many of Rivera’s charges.

Ellison further stated that the district will “establish by clear and convincing evidence that the petition for appointment of a receiver is arbitrary, capricious, or wholly irrelevant to restoring the school district to financial stability.”

Dauphin County Judge William Tully is slated to hear the case on Monday, in which the district must show that the state’s request for receivership is, in fact, “arbitrary and capricious.”

After the hearing, Tully has 10 days to affirm or deny the state’s petition to put the district into receivership. The state also has asked Tully to appoint the current chief recovery officer, Dr. Janet Samuels, as receiver for the district.

In his response today, Ellison also repeatedly stated that, according to the district’s 2013 recovery plan, a failure to meet recovery plan goals compels the state to “take the necessary steps to transfer District-educated students to schools under external management.”

The recovery plan indeed does contain the phrase “external management,” but fails to define what precisely that means.

“If the Court denies the Harrisburg School District’s prayer for relief and issues an order appointing Dr. Janet Samuels as Receiver, the Harrisburg School District respectfully submits that such order must direct the [sic] Secretary Rivera and Dr. Samuels to take all necessary steps to transfer all District-educated students to schools under external management effective for the 2019-20 school year,” Ellison concluded.

Meanwhile, the district remains under a court order banning it from entering into contracts without Samuels’ express consent. Tully issued that order last week after the district met in “special session” to consider a settlement with Premier Charter School without previously notifying Samuels.

The district today also issued a statement saying that it was prepared to cooperate with the state’s “real-time” financial audit—the state’s intention to review results of its financial audit of the district as the audit continues.

“We remain committed to transparency, the process of financial and academic recovery and a continued effort to put students first,” according to the district’s statement.

Headed to HBG: Author Casey Cep takes up where Harper Lee left off

June 12, 2019 | by Yaasmeen Piper

Everyone has their favorite book as a child. You know, the one that you read over and over again with a flashlight under your blankets way past your bedtime. For Casey Cep, that book was Harper Lee’s famous “To Kill A Mockingbird.”

However, Cep’s infatuation with Lee did not stop at her childhood. The book that made Lee withdraw from the public eye took Cep to Alabama to explore the town “To Kill A Mockingbird” was based on, have articles published in The New Yorker explaining the different sides of Lee and eventually to Lee’s unpublished manuscript.

That manuscript became the catalyst for Cep’s first book titled “Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee.” Next week, the author is coming to Midtown Scholar to share the story that Lee never finished.

“Any material from her is precious, and anything she touched feels miraculous to me,” Cep said about Lee’s manuscript. “No matter what writer or artist you are writing about, any historical piece of them feels almost godlike. It’s truly a miracle that it survived.”

The book begins with the story of Willie Maxwell, better known as “The Reverend.” Between the later 1960s and 1970s, five of the Reverend’s family members were found dead under “suspicious circumstances.” Rumors spread through the town. Some called it voodoo, the detectives called it insurance fraud. No matter what they called it, the Reverend was raking in thousands of dollars in life insurance money, and no one could stop him. Until someone did.

During the funeral of the Reverend’s last alleged victim, his step-daughter Shirley Ann Ellington, the girl’s uncle, Robert Burns, shot the Reverend three times in the head at point-blank range.

Less than a year after Maxwell’s murder, his lawyer, Tom Radney, convinced the famously reclusive Harper Lee to write a book about the six murders. She read about the murders in the newspaper, but it was Radney’s eagerness that made her start writing her first book almost two decades after “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

However, the only thing Radney got to see was four typed pages by Lee. By the time Radney passed away in 2011, the book still was not finished, nor was it finished when Lee passed away in 2016. Many gave up on ever seeing the book published, but the Radney family did not.

Enter Cep. After getting in contact with the Radney family, Cep wrote a piece for The New Yorker about Lee’s unfinished book in 2015. But after publishing it, more people who knew Radney or the Reverend started showing up, and Cep knew she had to tell the whole story.

“It’s thrilling to have my book out in the world,” she said. “Such an honor to get to talk with so many readers who are as intrigued by the story and its characters as I am.”

Even though “Furious Hours” was published a little over a month ago, Cep is already working on a second book that she is sure Lee would appreciate.

“It’s one of the best books of the year, hands down,” said Alex Brubaker, manager at Midtown Scholar. “Casey Cep delivers one of the most riveting true crime stories you’ve likely never heard about.”

See Casey Cep next Tuesday, June 18, at 7 p.m. at Midtown Scholar Bookstore, 1302 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg. For more information visit www.midtownscholar.com/featured-events.

At a Crossroads: New monument to commemorate Harrisburg history, struggle for voting rights

June 12, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Lenwood Sloan, with members of the Harrisburg Past Players, spoke on Tuesday at the unveiling of the pedestal portion of the monument, “A Gathering at the Crossroads.”

If you were passing through Strawberry Square late Tuesday afternoon, you may have been surprised to see the following: several gentlemen in top hats and tails, a big red ribbon and Lt. Gov. John Fetterman.

If you had stuck around, you would have learned what connected these very different things.

A crowd had assembled to watch the unveiling of the first portion of a monument that, around this time next year, is slated to be dedicated at N. 4^th and Walnut streets in Harrisburg, on the lawn of the Capitol’s Irvis Office Building.

The monument, called “A Gathering at the Crossroads,” commemorates the Old 8th Ward, the densely populated warren of streets and alleys demolished a century ago to vastly enlarge the Capitol Complex. The expansion of Forster Street some 40 years later destroyed the final part of the working-class area, a largely African-American neighborhood that also housed much of the city’s immigrant and Jewish populations.

“The more you hear, the sadder you become,” Fetterman said during his remarks, referring to the destruction of hundreds of buildings and the displacement of thousands of people. “But all you can do is celebrate and promote the efforts to remember.”

Indeed, yesterday’s two-hour ceremony was a celebration, led by local arts activist Lenwood Sloan, who is spearheading the project. It featured speeches, songs and dramatizations by the Harrisburg Past Players, a group that represents figures from local history.

Sloan said that the monument has a dual purpose. While it honors the Old 8^th, it also is designed as a tribute to voting rights—specifically, the U.S. Constitution’s 15^th and19^th amendments, which secured the vote for African Americans and for women, respectively.

Next year marks the 150^th anniversary of the 15^th Amendment and the 100^th anniversary of the 19^th Amendment, making the monument a timely endeavor.

“This project is about vigilance, about being vigilant about the blood, sweat and tears it took to advance these things,” Sloan said.

The monument’s Orator’s Pedestal in Strawberry Square, where it will be displayed through the summer.

The statue depicts four figures with strong Harrisburg ties meeting in the Old 8^th Ward, conversing and sharing a text of the 15^th Amendment. They’re gathered around the “Orator’s Pedestal,” the completed part of the bronze-cast monument unveiled on Tuesday. The pedestal features images from the Old 8^th around its four sides, along with a high relief map of a section of the ward at the top (close-up below).

Sloan and his team still must raise about two-thirds of the $360,000 needed for the project, he said.

“The next step is the casting in clay and the molding of the four figures,” he said.

Those life-sized figures are civil rights activist William Howard Day, Harrisburg native, journalist and lawyer Thomas Morris Chester, musician and restaurateur Jacob T. Compton and abolitionist and suffragist Francis Ellen Walker Harper. The third piece of the monument, besides the pedestal and the figures, is the circular landing, meant to mimic cobblestone, on which the figures will stand.

“We’re thrilled to be a part of this,” said Becky Ault, president of Lancaster-based Art Research Enterprises, which is sculpting the monument. “This is so much more than just art. It’s history, it’s social studies, it’s everything.”

Sloan said that much work lies ahead before the planned June 2020 monument unveiling, coinciding with the anniversaries of the 15^th and 19^th amendments. A large sum of money still must be raised to complete the project. Afterwards, the state legislature must vote to accept the gift.

In the meantime, visitors can drop by Strawberry Square to see the pedestal, which will be on display, along with an explanation of the project, until Labor Day.

“This will not just be a place for pigeons,” Sloan said of the completed monument. “It is about that junction in time through which we make the awareness of the vote.”

To read more about the project, read our March story, Pieces of the Puzzle, and watch our Burg in Focus video, featuring interviews with Lenwood Sloan.

Click here to contribute to the monument project.

Harrisburg hires consultant in effort to rein in I-83 widening proposal

June 11, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Aerial view of I-83 in Harrisburg from 19th Street to the Susquehanna River. A PennDOT proposal would double the width of this segment of the highway.

A split Harrisburg City Council on Tuesday night approved hiring an outside consultant to study the proposed expansion of I-83, with an eye towards possibly slimming down the project.

Council voted 5-2 to spend $72,500 to hire Harrisburg-based Kittelson & Associates to conduct a traffic and community impact study of the current state proposal to double the number of lanes running through the city.

The study would review PennDOT’s widening plan, which envisions as many as 12 lanes and new interchanges, and determine whether alternatives exist to reduce the project’s footprint and the impact on the community.

Before the vote, Councilman Westburn Majors said that the city had received a letter from PennDOT stating that it would take into consideration Kittelson’s findings.

“It looks like they’re open to further analysis,” Majors said following the meeting. “They trust Kittelson to be a straight shooter with them.”

At a work session last week, several council members requested such a letter prior to the vote today.

The letter wasn’t enough to sway council President Wanda Williams, who maintained her opposition, which she first publicly expressed at the work session. Before voting no, she reiterated that she believed that the expenditure was a waste—that it ultimately wouldn’t change PennDOT’s plans and that the money would be better used elsewhere.

“I don’t think that the city of Harrisburg should be committing $72,000 when I have potholes all up and down my streets and my pools haven’t opened yet,” she said.

PennDOT’s current widening plan would have a significant impact on areas of South Harrisburg, displacing as many as 28 city residences and 20 businesses.

The city plans to pay for the study from its large fund balance, Mayor Eric Papenfuse has said previously.

In other decisions on Tuesday night, City Council:

Unanimously approved the final land development plan for Harrisburg University’s new academic tower, hotel and restaurant, which allows HU to begin the project at S. 3^rd and Chestnut streets.
Voted 4-3 against the appointment of Franchon Beeks as the city’s new director of Housing and Development.
Voted 5-2 for the appointment of David Baker as the city’s new director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities.
Unanimously passed a resolution closing several “paper” streets (streets that exist only on paper) on the future site of the state Archives building near N. 6^th and Hamilton streets.
Unanimously passed a resolution supporting U.S. congressional efforts to enact the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019.

From the Mud: Rapper Geniuz rhymes to put Harrisburg on the music map

June 11, 2019 | by Yaasmeen Piper

Andu Desbele, aka Geniuz

A lot of people call Andu Desbele soft-spoken. He disagrees, but there might be some truth to it. There’s such a gentleness to his voice, it’s hard to imagine him being able to speak over a crowded room, let alone perform in front of one.

But, when he is on stage under his rap name “Geniuz” a different side of him comes alive.

“I am more vicious, I get to unleash more.” he said. “I can jump around, dance, do crazy stuff, throw shirts and everything I feel like doing. I get to get that energy up.”

The 22-year-old rapper has “unleashed” at multiple venues in and around Harrisburg. According to Desbele, all of his songs reflect moments of his life.

“[My music] is very reflective of my issues with being poor, and not having money when I wanted it, having a broken heart,” he said. “That fuels a person to do a lot of different things. For me, it was writing.”

Desbele fell into music during a cypher, a freestyle rap battle, with some of his friends when he was 14. Though they were mostly all rookies, Desbele might have been the rookie of the rookies since he barely listened to rap music before entering the ring. Most of the lines in the cypher were aimed at the other’s hairline or outfit. Still, Desbele felt the start of something.

After that, he dove into his music, writing rhymes whenever he had time and recording them on his laptop. According to Desbele, no one believed him when he told people he wanted to pursue rap until a year later, when he was chosen to participate in BET’s “Next Hit” in North Carolina.

For the first time, Desbele got to work with other established and emerging artists, record in a studio and send a professional email (which, at 15, was a huge accomplishment).

Since then, Desbele has been working the underground Harrisburg music scene. He performed at several locations such as Little Amps, the Harrisburg Improv Theatre and the Underground Bike Shop. His favorite thing about the Harrisburg music scene is the grittiness of the artists and how they are fighting to make a name for themselves and their city.

“We don’t have any big, Harrisburg rappers to put our name on the map. We’re really coming up with our own studios, our own venues,” he said. “The sound is so unique and everything’s just from the mud, and everyone is just trying to do everything by themselves and not by the book.”

Desbele is currently cultivating artists for his new music group Naomi17. The goal is to have the music group established in the next few months.

In 10 years, he plans to be in the later years of his music career and branching out into other venues such as television or comic books. But, he promises the music will never stop.

“I’m probably never going to retire, I’m just going to slow down a lot,” he said. “Music will always be a heavy presence in what I do.”

Check out the music yourself at soundcloud.com/geniuz717. Follow him on social media @Geniuz717 and @N17worldwide.

This story is one in a series of local musician profiles in celebration of African American Music Appreciation Month.

Judge issues order preventing Harrisburg school board from acting on contracts

June 10, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Harrisburg school district’s Administration Building

A Dauphin County judge has issued an order preventing the Harrisburg school board from unilaterally entering into new contracts, including a settlement with Premier Charter School.

Judge William Tully issued the order late Friday, following a hearing in his courtroom, but the order was just made public this morning. It bars the board from entering into binding obligations without the express consent of the state’s representative to the district, Chief Recovery Officer Janet Samuels.

The order states that “. . . the [school] board is enjoined from binding the district to new—or terminating existing—commitments, obligations, or expenditure of resources, including by amending, altering or entering into any contracts for goods or services (including the hiring or contracting of personnel), unless such action is done with the written consent of the Chief Recovery Officer as being consistent with the 2016 Amended Recovery Plan . . . .”

The final sentence of the order specifically prevents the board from “entering into any settlement authorizing the granting of a charter to Premier Charter School.”

Last week, the board hastily scheduled a “special” meeting, which Tully stopped by issuing an injunction as the meeting’s private executive session was occurring. At that meeting, the board was to consider voting on a settlement with Premier Charter School, which would have allowed the school to continue operating, despite the board denying it a charter renewal last year.

The meeting also was called to discuss a variety of personnel issues, which district critics feared included entering into contracts with Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney and Solicitor James Ellison.

On Friday, Tully held a hearing that revealed that Thursday night’s school board meeting would have taken up the issue of a settlement with Premier Charter School. According to Tully, Samuels had not been made aware of the proposed settlement.

In its petition for placing the school district into state receivership, the state Department of Education has recommended that Samuels be named the district’s receiver.

“Shouldn’t you have discussed the settlement with your CRO and possible receiver?” Tully asked Ellison during the court hearing on Friday.

Tully also criticized the school district for calling the special meeting so suddenly and then posting the agenda, which made no mention of the proposed settlement, just hours before the meeting was to occur.

“That timetable had a smell to it,” Tully said.

The hearing on the district entering into state receivership is slated for June 17.

“Painted Journey”: PA Watercolor Society opens exhibit at Brain Vessel

June 10, 2019 | by Bob MacGinnes

My personal 3rd in the Burg arrived early this month, and the “burg” got switched to Mechanicsburg. That’s accurate in that an art reception was held at Brain Vessel on the Carlisle Pike last weekend, but don’t despair. Harrisburg’s monthly 3rd arrives as scheduled on June 21.

Nothing evokes summer more than a wistful watercolor painting that engages a symphony of colors. So, it was appropriate that the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society’s board of directors opened their exhibit, “Along the Painted Journey.”

The board’s Debra Kreiger graciously guided me around the gallery for the grand tour of watercolors. A knowledgeable host, she has a personal connection to the gallery, as she is one of the co-owner’s mothers. In the background, the jazz duo of Rhoads and Putt provided the perfect seasonal sounds, sharing standards with a twist on electric guitars. The society’s Walker family was well represented—John, Virginia and Johnny. Rounding out the board of 12 were artists Donna Barlup, Jeannine Swartz, Pam Wenger, Linda Young, Helen Canfield, Eric Miller, Gay Dunn and Caryn Husowech.

Barlup is also a past president of the Susquehanna Valley Plein Air Painters, and her works have also been well represented in “Art of the State,” the annual juried exhibition at the Pennsylvania State Museum. She and her fellow artists embrace the challenges created by watercolors, approaching their next work with planned precision as exacting execution determines the finished result.

Perhaps one of the most challenging mediums in the art compendium, watercolor painting, in its best representation, proves that focused attention to detail and a steady hand are paramount to success. Watercolorists’ lives are defined by beauty and passion, chasing ethereal eloquence on archival paper with brush in hand.

Speaking of challenging—on hand for the show was Roni Dietrich, who has specialized in the artistic endeavor of scrimshaw for 40 years. In case you’re not familiar, scrimshaw is the adornment of whalebone and walrus tusks with carved or colored designs. Her work has been featured at galleries in Maine and Rhode Island, as well as in art journals and national publications.

It makes sense that Dietrich is a house artist at Brain Vessel, since, as one pulls up to the building on the Carlisle Pike, piracy immediately comes to mind. Romance of the high seas is visibly present with a rusted ship’s anchor at the entrance to the gallery.

The brainchild of Doug Koozer and Jason Kreiger, Brain Vessel opened in 2013 and is known for incorporating their love and legacy of high-seas hijinks, branding its way onto a buccaneer’s bounty of treasures. It’s on playing cards, collectible coins, dice and tooled leather coasters, among other objects, all carrying a nautical theme. Brain Vessel’s own creations mark just the beginning of an adventure-worthy visit through a gallery that highlights artists’ works through showings and classes.

Brain Vessel houses a pirate’s plunder of products for adorning the home, from fine art to one-of-a-kind, out-sized sculptures. Woven baskets, pottery, turned wooden vessels, hand-cast jewelry, teas and botanical honeys complete the flagship’s first floor. With another studio gallery below deck and a sumptuous garden out back, I recommend allowing an hour or so just to navigate the “vessel” and experience the adventure in its complete package.

The real genius of Brain Vessel is its ability to cross-pollinate both merchandise and ideas with other central Pennsylvania merchants and businesses. This creates a network that helps all in the way of maximum exposure. By breathing life into a vision of their client’s needs, Brain Vessel creates a polished product uniquely its own, solidly establishing an identifiable brand that cements an intangible idea with a real commodity. No mad scientist here, but true genius, capable of executing an idea to its desired end.

Brain Vessel Gallery is located at 4704 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg. For more information visit https://brainvessel.com/ or their Facebook page.

The Week That Was: A summary of news and features around Harrisburg

June 7, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

A meeting of the Harrisburg school board

It was a big news week in and around Harrisburg this past week. Here are some of the stories and features you may have missed.

Harrisburg City Council reacted warmly to Harrisburg University’s plan for a 17-story downtown tower. Click here for the full story.

Harrisburg school district is set for a state takeover, as PA Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera filed a petition to place the district into receivership. Click here for the full story.

Harrisburg school district played a bit of a cat-and-mouse game with the state Department of Education, which acted several times to prevent the school board from entering into new contracts ahead of a hearing on possible receivership. For the story, click here, here and here.

Lancaster’s Jonathan Burns appeared on “America’s Got Talent,” bringing his twisty routine to a national audience. Click here for the full story.

Midtown Scholar Bookstore’s stage is the scene of “Drag Storytime,” a national trend that has come to Harrisburg. Click here for the feature story.

PennDOT’s plan to wide I-83 is opposed by Harrisburg, but should the city spend money to try to influence the final design? City Council seems divided on the issue. Click here for the full story.

Sara Bozich has more than 100 ideas for things to do during this early summer weekend. Click here for her full list.

“Free Shakespeare in the Park” opened last weekend, and our reviewer recommends that you catch the annual production in Reservoir Park, this year featuring “Much Ado About Nothing.” Click here for her review.

Additional stories from TheBurg over the past week:

Ephraim Slaughter was one of the last surviving veterans of the Civil War, and his ancestors now carry on his legacy in Harrisburg.

Music is a big part of our lives in the Harrisburg area, and our music columnist shares her can’t-miss shows for the month in her monthly “Musical Notes” column.

Urban Churn has some of the best craft ice cream you’ll ever taste, and now, with a new shop, you can walk right in.

Do you receive TheBurg Daily, our daily digest of news and events? If not, subscribe here.

Judge expected to issue order barring Harrisburg school board from entering into contracts

June 7, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Harrisburg school district administration building

A Dauphin County judge is expected to issue an order stopping the Harrisburg school district from entering into certain contracts without the express consent of the district’s chief recovery officer.

At an hourlong court hearing on Friday afternoon, Judge William Tully said he was prepared to issue an order that would prevent the school board from acting on certain contracts and other legally binding matters, in anticipation of a June 17 hearing that could place the district into state receivership.

Tully seemed to reject the principal argument of district Solicitor James Ellison, who said that, even if the school board entered into contracts over the next couple of weeks, those contracts potentially could be unwound if the district were placed into receivership.

Tully, however, pointed out that that undoing those contracts would require litigation, which would end up unnecessarily costing the taxpayers of Harrisburg.

“That’s why this injunction is probably going to be granted, because that’s where the harm is,” Tully said.

He indicated that he would draft the order to allow the district to enter into contracts only with the explicit approval of Dr. Janet Samuels, the district’s chief recovery officer.

Last Monday, education Secretary Pedro Rivera filed a petition with the court requesting a three-year state receivership and asking that Samuels be named the receiver. The hearing on the petition is slated for June 17, and Tully then has 10 days to approve or deny it.

Immediately after the petition was filed, the current school board called a special meeting for unspecified “personnel” matters, leading some to believe that the board wanted to quickly pass long-term contracts for the district superintendent and solicitor.

Today, Tully also called into question Ellison’s reasoning for that special meeting, which was stopped last night after Tully issued a temporary injunction to prevent it from happening before today’s hearing.

Ellison said that the meeting was called so the board could approve a potential settlement with Premier Arts & Sciences Charter School, which would allow the threatened school to continue operating, and, in the process, approve a smattering of faculty contracts.

Tully, though, was not satisfied with that answer. He cited the board’s repeated reliance on special meetings, its alleged lack of transparency and the fact that the agenda for the special meeting was posted just hours before it was to occur.

“That timetable had a smell to it,” Tully said.

Today’s hearing also brought to light that the state’s petition for receivership is likely to be granted. Tully described the state’s burden of proof as a “low bar” to meet, as state law allows for receivership unless the judge determines that the request is “arbitrary” or “capricious.”

As the hearing ended, the crowd of about 50 people broke into applause with the belief that the judge would grant the emergency order preventing the school district from entering into contracts.

“I am extremely pleased,” said Jayne Buchwach, who, last month, won the Democratic nomination for a school board seat. “And I don’t feel badly for Mr. Ellison.”

Lancaster’s Jonathan Burns is funny, bendy and clearly has talent

June 7, 2019 | by Hanna Martin

Jonathan Burns performing on “America’s Got Talent”

Jonathan Burns first appeared on TV trapped inside of a zipped suitcase.

During his audition for NBC’s “America’s Got Talent,” which aired on Tuesday, Burns proceeded to squeeze his entire body through both a toilet seat and a tennis racket.

It’s no wonder that the Lancaster resident has trouble explaining his unique comedy act to people.

“One of the reasons that it’s hard to describe what I do is because I try to be different,” Burns said. “I want to do my own thing and not be like anything else. I think that’s the artist in me trying to create something new and different for the audience to experience.”

His love of performing started when he was young. Originally from Johnstown, Burns, a self-described “weird kid,” said he always enjoyed performing in magic, contortionism and comedy. In gym class, he was the king of armpit fart competitions, and impressed his friends by bending his body in peculiar ways.

When Burns was in middle school, a magic shop opened near his house, and he spent hours learning the tricks of the trade. While his friends started getting normal first jobs at grocery stores or the local diner, he was booking gigs at birthday parties and retirement homes.

However, Burns wasn’t always a comedian. When he was first starting out in magic, he said that he tried to be serious, but “with this face, it didn’t work” — instead of getting the “wow” response he was looking for, he got laughs. He embraced the humor.

“Now, I get a wide array of wows, laughs and even amazement,” he said.

And that’s the reaction Burns got when he appeared on televisions across America on the June 4 airing of “America’s Got Talent.” Although he has been a full-time performer for 15 years and had considered auditioning on the show before, it just had never felt like the right time.

That is, until a friend who was a veteran of the show strongly encouraged him to try. During his audition, Burns hopped around the stage with funky dance moves in a tracksuit, throwing glitter and squeezing his body through various objects in creative ways.

The judges loved him, and he proceeded to the next round.

“Starting as a kid, I would perform for like five people in my kitchen, and now I’m on television in front of millions of people, which is pretty great,” Burns said.

Burns graduated from Millersville University in 2004 with a degree in art education. He said that he found “his people” at the art program and loved the encouragement to be creative.

“I still use things that I learned at Millersville every day in my act,” he said.

Burns is excited to continue to share his many creative talents, saying it felt great to hear the judges say “yes,” advancing him to the next round. And although he hopes to wow people in the future, he still has one main purpose when performing.

“The comedy is my main focus,” he said. “I’m always trying to make people laugh.”

To learn more about Jonathan Burns, visit his website.

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