Auto parts firm Magna International Inc. will help to establish a chair in community college leadership at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. The chair will be named after former Premier William G. Davis (BA 1951, LLD Hon. 1967), who was instrumental in expanding the province’s system of colleges. “Bill Davis, more than anyone, put in place the college system, which produces some of the best-trained workers in the world – workers who are essential to a strong provincial economy,” says Belinda Stronach, executive vice-president of Magna International Inc. Magna’s $1-million gift is matched by U of T and will enhance research in key policy areas, examining, for example, the degree to which employers’ needs are met by Canada’s college system and how private-sector partners and colleges can collaborate more effectively. Professor Michael Skolnick has been named as the first Davis chair holder.
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