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This thesis looks at class traditions of students at Lehigh University from the founding of the institution in 1865 until the early 1970s, specifically examining how and why they waxed and waned through the years. Traditions for and by students were readily embraced by the undergraduates. Examples included the Calculus Cremation, the cane rush, freshman/sophomore hazing rituals, and campus rules, such as the one dictating the wearing of a freshman hat known as a dink.

In 1919 the War Chest, which centralized funding for a variety of domestic and international aid organizations, was reorganized as the Central Council for Social Services and Community Chest in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. These organizations attempted to unite social work within the city but were controlled by executive boards that opposed centralized control over the numerous private philanthropic organizations. Dr. William Estes, of St.