William Davis, the late premier and education minister, was remembered in a memorial service as a shining example of how politics should be handled, and as a champion of education.
“Bill’s goal was always to help people,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at the memorial service for Davis held on Nov. 4. “That’s why he loved politics, because he knew it was there, that he could get things done. And that’s what Bill Davis was all about.”
In 1959, at the age of 29, Davis was first elected into the province’s Legislative Assembly, for the southern Ontario constituency of Peel.
He was a backbench supporter of the government of Leslie Frost and became the chief organizer for Robert Macaulay’s campaign to succeed him as the premier and Progressive Conservative party leader.
After Macaulay was defeated, he and Davis supported John Robarts on the final vote, who ended up winning in no small part to their support.
This humble beginning would only be the start of his long career of service.
Davis would be appointed to the cabinet of Robarts as the Minister Of Education in 1962 and then Minister of University Affairs in two years later. It was during this time that education spending skyrocketed by nearly 450 per cent by 1971.
That same year, Davis was elected Premier, with particular achievements being the patriation of the Canadian Constitution and medical and education sector expansions throughout his terms.
Post-secondary education was a key interest of his. Davis would create the community colleges system during his tenure as Minister of Education and would continue it when he was premier.
The goal was to establish accessible post-secondary institutions in local areas to serve the communities they were built in. The first of these new colleges would be Centennial College, founded in 1966. Humber followed in 1967.
In this regard, Toronto Mayor John Tory praised Davis for being ahead of his time and leading the charge in matters that would take decades for others to grasp.
“Premier Davis sensed where Ontario of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s was going,” Tory said at the Davis memorial. “Understanding that one of the great equalizers, perhaps the greatest, was education, and leading the charge to establish the college system. He changed so many lives for the better.”
To date, Ontario has 24 public colleges throughout the province, offering “career-oriented, post-secondary education and training,” according to the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act.
But the program has evolved far beyond its original purpose. Ontario colleges are now international hubs of learning and some now offer Bachelor’s degrees.
Humber College itself has seen a lot of changes since its founding. Its original focus was skill-based training courses for Etobicoke and the Borough of York but rapidly expanded as enrolment increased.
By 1980 Humber was offering weekend programs and adaptive classes tailored to a changing job field. Humber also had begun an international outreach program.
Now, Humber is the centre of learning for nearly 20,000 full-time students studying in more than 200 programs, a monumental change from its community-based origin.
Humber has also evolved into a noticeable business-minded institution, under the guidance of current president Chris Whitaker.
Davis, throughout his political career, made many friendships spanning the political divides that helped ensure his success.
Among those politicians is former Ontario NDP leader and Premier Bob Rae, who said Davis always fought to improve the province and that his connections were an example of how the game should be played.
“He was a tough partisan when he needed to be,” Rae said. “And yet he made a point of cultivating friendships across the divides that often make politics too bitter, and too narrow.”
Davis, affectionately nicknamed Brampton Billy, set out to create accessible education for local students, but he helped create a legacy of accessible education for thousands worldwide.