Edward Burns’14 is a classy gentleman from Reading, PA. He studies professional writing and American studies at Penn State. His hobbies include basketball, reading classic literature, studying theology and philosophy, politics, and volunteering at church. After graduation, he hopes to travel, launch a business, write books, find the woman of his dreams, but above all, figure it out as he goes along.
Why Edward Burns?
When I first approached Edward about appearing as our first ever His Campus Classy Celebrity, he denied his classiness. He told me, “I don’t think I should be in a classy magazine. I don’t have (class) yet, but I am working towards it.” That, my friends, is exactly why Edward deserves the title of our first ever classy man. He possesses a quality that the average college man lacks: modesty and humility.
Edward’s Thoughts on Class in the College Environment
After I convinced he is deserving of the honor, he shared his thoughts on classiness in the college environment: “Today, being classy is countercultural. It’s taking the standards set up by society and rejecting it for what it is.” He invites us to look back at the people of the fifties for a true picture of classiness. He believes that true class is rejected in today’s society and he is on a mission to gain it back.
What Makes a Man Classy?
Edward thinks true class is more than just buying classy possessions or partaking in classy hobbies. Its not just someone who is well-dressed, drives a classy car, and smokes pipe. He believes a classy man must strive to do what is right all the time. “What really makes a man classy is how they treat others and how they act. It’s his integrity, his value and morals.”