Prior to the 1960s, only institutes of technology and vocational centres co-existed with universities in the province of Ontario at the post-secondary level, and many of those schools were established primarily to help veterans reintegrate into society in the post-war years. In response to an increasing need for technical education, Minister of Education (later Premier) William Davis, regarded now as the “father of the Ontario College System”, established Ontario's colleges of applied arts and technology to train individuals for employment in their respective communities. St. Lawrence College was founded during this period in 1967 as part of the province's initiative to create many such institutions. These schools were designed to provide career-oriented diploma and certificate courses, as well as continuing education programs in the communities in which they are located.