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The Ministry of Colleges and Universities is the ministry of the Government of Ontario responsible for administration of laws relating to post-secondary education. This ministry is one of two education ministries, the other being the Ministry of Education (responsible for primary and secondary schools across Ontario). The Ministry's offices are in downtown Toronto. The current minister is Nolan Quinn.
| Ministère de la Collèges et Universités (French) | |
| Ministry overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1964 |
| Headquarters | Toronto[1] |
| Annual budget | Estimated C$ 6.2 Billion in 2008/09[2] |
| Ministers responsible |
|
| Website | https://www.ontario.ca/page/ministry-advanced-education-and-skills-development |
In May 1964, the Department of University Affairs Act was passed establishing the Department of University Affairs. The department was charged with administering the government's support programs for higher education, previously the responsibility of the Department of Education. Bill Davis, the inaugural minister, was the Minister of Education at the time and continued to hold the position after the department's establishment.
In addition to jurisdiction over higher education, the department also had financial jurisdiction over the Royal Ontario Museum, the Royal Botanical Gardens and the Art Gallery of Ontario. In October 1971, the department's size was doubled by the addition of the Applied Arts and Technology Branch of the Department of Education. In light of this expansion of functions, the name of the department was changed to the Department of Colleges and Universities.
It was renamed the Ministry of Colleges and Universities in 1972 as part of a government-wide restructuring. In 1975, various cultural programs and institutions of the ministry were transferred to the newly created Ministry of Culture and Recreation.
In 1985, a separate Ministry of Skills Development was created. In 1993, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Skills Development were combined to form the Ministry of Education and Training.
In June 1999, the responsibilities for post-secondary education and skills development were again given to a standalone ministry, named the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. Briefly between 2016 and 2018, it was renamed the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development.
In October 2019, training and skills development was moved to the Ministry of Labour and the ministry was renamed the Ministry of Colleges and Universities.[3]
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The Minister of Colleges and Universities is a member of the Executive Council of Ontario (or cabinet) reporting to the Premier and held accountable by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The deputy minister manages the operations of the ministry that includes five main divisions. As a whole, the ministry has responsibility for administration of laws relating to post-secondary education and skills training in Ontario. The divisions cover employment and training, post-secondary education, strategic policy and programs, corporate management and services, and French-language education and educational operations.[4] The divisions report to the deputy minister who then reports to the minister.[4] The ministry works with several external advisory bodies to assist in the governance of the higher education system in Ontario.[5]
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In addition to being responsible for the administration of policies, laws, and funding relating to Ontario's 24 colleges and 22 universities, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities is also responsible for the registration of career colleges as well as financial aid through the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).[6]
Ministry Agencies
- Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario
- Ontario Research Fund Advisory Board
- Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board
- Training Completion Assurance Fund Advisory Board
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Rae Report, 2005
The Rae Report, officially titled Ontario: A Leader in Learning, called for deregulation of tuition fees, income-contingent loan repayments, and an increase in public funding.[8]
| Portrait | Name | Term of office | Tenure | Political party (Ministry) |
Note | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minister of University Affairs | PC (Robarts) |
||||||
 | Bill Davis | May 14, 1964 | March 1, 1971 | 6 years, 291 days | Concurrently Minister of Education | ||
| John White | March 1, 1971 | October 28, 1971 | to be continued | PC (Davis) |
|||
| Minister of Colleges and Universities | |||||||
| John White | October 28, 1971 | February 2, 1972 | 338 days | ||||
| George Kerr | February 2, 1972 | September 28, 1972 | 239 days | ||||
 | Jack McNie | September 28, 1972 | February 26, 1974 | 1 year, 151 days | |||
| James Auld | February 26, 1974 | October 7, 1975 | 1 year, 223 days | ||||
| Harry Parrott | October 7, 1975 | August 18, 1978 | 2 years, 315 days | ||||
| Bette Stephenson | August 18, 1978 | February 8, 1985 | 6 years, 174 days | Concurrently Minister of Education | |||
| Keith Norton | February 8, 1985 | May 17, 1985 | 98 days | PC (Miller) |
Concurrently Minister of Education. (Ministry of Skills Development is created March 22, 1985 and assigned to Ernie Eves). | ||
| Larry Grossman | May 17, 1985 | June 26, 1985 | 40 days | Concurrently Minister of Education and Government House Leader (Minister of Skills Development is Phil Gillies). | |||
| Greg Sorbara | June 26, 1985 | September 29, 1987 | 2 years, 95 days | Liberal (Peterson) |
Concurrently Minister of Skills Development | ||
| Lyn McLeod | September 29, 1987 | August 2, 1989 | 1 year, 307 days | Alvin Curling served as Minister of Skills Development during this time | |||
| Sean Conway | August 2, 1989 | October 1, 1990 | 1 year, 60 days | Concurrently Minister of Education & Minister of Skills Development | |||
| Richard Allen | October 1, 1990 | February 3, 1993 | 2 years, 125 days | NDP (Rae) |
Concurrently Minister of Skills Development | ||
| Minister of Education and Training | |||||||
| Dave Cooke | February 3, 1993 | June 26, 1995 | 2 years, 143 days | ||||
| John Snobelen | June 26, 1995 | October 10, 1997 | 2 years, 106 days | PC (Harris) |
|||
| David Johnson | October 10, 1997 | June 17, 1999 | 1 year, 250 days | ||||
| Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities | |||||||
| Dianne Cunningham | June 17, 1999 | April 14, 2002 | 4 years, 127 days | Concurrently Minister Responsible for Women's Issues (February 8, 2001 – October 22, 2003) | |||
| April 15, 2002 | October 22, 2003 | PC (Eves) | |||||
| Mary Anne Chambers | October 23, 2003 | June 29, 2005 | 1 year, 249 days | Liberal (McGuinty) |
|||
| Chris Bentley | June 29, 2005 | October 30, 2007 | 2 years, 123 days | ||||
.jpg){kind=small} | John Milloy | October 30, 2007 | October 20, 2011 | 3 years, 355 days (first instance) | |||
 | Glen Murray | October 20, 2011 | November 5, 2012 | 1 year, 16 days | Resigned to seek the leadership of the Ontario Liberal Party | ||
| John Milloy | November 5, 2012 | February 11, 2013 | 98 days (first instance) 4 years and 88 days in total | Interim minister upon Murray's resignation | ||
_(cropped).jpg) | Brad Duguid | February 11, 2013 | June 24, 2014 | 1 year, 133 days | Liberal (Wynne) |
||
 | Reza Moridi | June 24, 2014 | June 13, 2016 | 1 year, 355 days | Concurrently Minister of Research and Innovation | ||
| Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development | |||||||
_(cropped).jpg) | Deb Matthews | June 13, 2016 | January 17, 2018 | 1 year, 218 days | While Deputy Premier, Chair of Cabinet and Minister Responsible for Digital Government | ||
.png) | Mitzie Hunter | January 17, 2018 | June 29, 2018 | 163 days | |||
| Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities | PC (Ford) | ||||||
 | Merrilee Fullerton | June 29, 2018 | June 20, 2019 | 356 days | |||
 | Ross Romano | June 20, 2019 | October 21, 2019 | 5 years, 186 days | |||
| Minister of Colleges and Universities | |||||||
| Ross Romano | October 21, 2019 | June 18, 2021 | 2 years, 354 days | |||
 | Jill Dunlop | June 18, 2021 | August 16, 2024 | 3 years, 59 days | |||
 | Nolan Quinn | August 16, 2024 | present | 129 days | |||
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