Flags at all Conestoga campuses have been lowered to half-mast to honour the life of William Grenville (Bill) Davis, the 18th Premier of Ontario and founder of the Ontario college system.
Davis died on Sunday, August 8 at the age of 92.
Known as the Ontario’s “Education Premier,” Bill Davis served as the province’s Minister of Education from 1962 to 1971, before being elected as Premier in 1971, a post he held until 1985.
His legacy includes the establishment of Ontario’s public college system as well as the creation of several new universities to accommodate the education needs of a burgeoning youth population, establishment of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, and the creation of TVOntario.
According to multiple sources, Premier Davis repeatedly stated, “There is no more important commitment that a government can make than to education.”
Davis was sworn in as a member of the Queen's Privy Council of Canada in 1982. He was invested as a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1986 and as a Companion of the Order of Ontario in 1987, and inducted as a Knight in France's Legion of Honor in 2001.
For more details of Premier Davis’ life and career, visit the Toronto Star.