The Baltzell Endowment
The Baltzell endowment was created in honor of E. Digby Baltzell upon his retirement from the Department of Sociology in 1988, by his colleagues. Dr. Baltzell was a much-loved professor and colleague, and a well-respected sociologist of the upper-class who is often credited with popularizing the term “WASP.” The endowment supports our Baltzell Scholars – undergraduates who work in the department in a variety of ways as well as our undergraduate awards.
Edward Digby Baltzell was born in Philadelphia in 1915. He graduated with a B.S. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1940 and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University in 1952. He served on the sociology faculty at Penn from 1947 until his retirement in 1986.
