William David Ford (August 6, 1927 – August 14, 2004) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

and namesake of the

Federal Direct Student Loan Program The William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (also called FDLP, FDSLP, and Direct Loan Program) provides "low-interest loans for students and parents to help pay for the cost of a student's education after high school. The lender is the U.S ...

. Ford was known for his support of

workers The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic regio ...

and educational opportunity. Among his significant legislative accomplishments were authoring the Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (the "WARN Act" or "Plant Closing Act") and the Middle Income Student Assistance Act, and his key role in passing the

Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a United States labor law requiring covered employers to provide employees with job-protected, unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. The FMLA was a major part of President Bill C ...

. In 1994, the Federal Direct Student Loan Program was named in his honor.

Biography

Ford was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

and attended Henry Ford Trade School, Melvindale High School, Nebraska State Teachers College, and

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

. His father, a Scottish immigrant, was an autoworker who was killed on the job, an incident that influenced Ford's political views. He interrupted his studies to serve in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, 1944–1946. He also served in the

United States Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...

from 1950 to 1958. After the war, he received a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private university, private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Mountain States, Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is ...

in 1949, and a J.D. from that university's

College of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

in 1951. He was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1951 and practiced law in

Taylor, Michigan Taylor is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Its population was 63,409 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Taylor is the fifth most-populated city in Wayne County and the 17th List of municipa ...

. He was justice of the peace for Taylor Township, 1955–1957; city attorney for Melvindale, 1957–1959; and attorney for Taylor Township, 1957–1964. He was a delegate to the Michigan constitutional convention, 1961–1962, which drafted the state constitution adopted in 1963. He was a member of the

Michigan State Senate The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. Along with the Michigan House of Representatives, it composes the state legislature, which has powers, roles and duties defined by Article IV of the Michigan Constitution, ado ...

, 1962–1964; member and officer of Michigan's Sixteenth District Democratic Organization, 1952–1964; delegate to Michigan Democratic conventions, 1952–1970, and to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

in 1968. He was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

for the 89th and the fourteen succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1965 to January 3, 1995. He was chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service in the 97th through 101st Congresses, and of the

Committee on Education and Labor The Committee on Education and Labor is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. There are 50 members in this committee. Since 2019, the chair of the Education and Labor committee is Robert Cortez Scott of Virginia. Hi ...

in the 102nd and 103rd Congresses. He did not seek re-election in the 1994 election. Ford died in 2004 at his home in

Ypsilanti Township, Michigan Ypsilanti Charter Township is a charter township of Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 53,362 at the 2010 census. The city of Ypsilanti is mostly surrounded by the township, but the two are administered autonomou ...

of complications from a stroke and was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. Despite their shared surname and home state, William D. Ford was not related to either the

Henry Ford family The family of Henry Ford is an American family from the U.S. state of Michigan, best known for their control of the Ford Motor Company automobile manufacturer, which was founded by Henry Ford in the early-twentieth century. Henry's grandson Willi ...

or U.S. president

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

References

External links

The Political Graveyard
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, William D. 1927 births 2004 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Democratic Party Michigan state senators Politicians from Detroit Politicians from Ypsilanti, Michigan Sturm College of Law alumni United Church of Christ members Wayne State University alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan 20th-century American politicians United States Air Force reservists