William Winter (politician)

Infobox Governor
name= William Winter


imagesize= 100px
caption=
order=58^th
office= Governor of Mississippi
term_start= January 1980
term_end= January 1984
lieutenant= Brad Dye
predecessor= Cliff Finch
successor= Bill Allain
birth_date= birth date and age|1923|02|21
birth_place= Grenada, Mississippi
death_date=
death_place=
party= Democratic

William Forrest Winter (b. Grenada, Mississippi, February 21 1923) is an American politician from Mississippi. He served as governor of Mississippi from 1980 to 1984 as a Democrat. He is known for his strong support of public education, racial reconciliation, and historic preservation. Winter is best remembered for the passage of the Mississippi Education Reform Act. The law was the first serious attempt at improving state education in over 20 years and, among other things, established public kindergartens.

Biography

He is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and the Ole Miss law school, where he served as Editor of the Mississippi Law Journal. During his time at Ole Miss, he was an active member of the Phi Delta Theta chapter. During World War II, Winter served in the United States Army infantry in the Philippines.

Winter first entered politics in 1947. While in law school, Winter was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives. He was subsequently re-elected in 1951 and 1955. He served as Tax Collector of the State of Mississippi as well as State Treasurer and Lieutenant Governor.

After finishing his term as governor, he unsuccessfully ran for the United States Senate that year against Republican incumbent Thad Cochran.

William Winter currently practices law in the law firm of Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis, P.A., based in Jackson, Mississippi, the state's capital, with offices in Gulfport and Olive Branch, Mississippi.He was a member of President Clinton’s Advisory Board on Race in 1997-1998. The William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation on the University of Mississippi's Oxford campus is named in his honor.

In March 2008, he was given the Profile in Courage Award by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum for his work advancing education and racial reconciliation.

External links

* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1718439 NPR: William Winter and the Education of Mississippi]
* [http://www.olemiss.edu/winterinstitute/ William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation]
* [http://mshistory.k12.ms.us/features/feature48/governors/winter.htm Mississippi History Now]
* [http://www.bettersouth.org/fivequestions/05.08winter.htm Center for a Better South Interview with William Winter]
* [http://www.upress.state.ms.us/catalog/fall2006/the_measure_of_our_days.html The Measure of Our Days Writings of William F. Winter]
* [http://www.ihl.state.ms.us/FINANCIALAID/wwts.html William Winter Teacher Scholar Loan]

succession box
years=1980-1984
before=Cliff Finch
title=Governor of Mississippi
after=William Allain
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