A
ASHLEY KEMPHER/UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI NOVEMBER 2016 BCBUSINESS 29
At first glance, the
new president of
UBC
is impossible to spot
amid the throngs
packed onto a plaza in
front of the year-old,
$107-million Student
Union Building. But,
looking closely at
the way people have
gathered on this
pleasantly sunny day
in mid-August, it soon
becomes clear that
Santa Ono—wearing
his trademark bow tie,
in
UBC blue and gold,
and regulation white
shirt and dark pants—is
the main attraction.
The crowd of students,
parents, faculty and
staff who've come for
a meet-and-greet look
enraptured—their faces
glowing, and camera
phones raised, as if it's
a charismatic preacher
or politician they've
come to hear speak.
SANTA ONO WILL
BE INAUGURATED
LATER THIS MONTH
AS UBC'S 15TH
PRESIDENT. POPULIST,
GREGARIOUS, DEVOUT
AND VULNERABLE,
HE'S A UNIVERSITY
ADMINISTRATOR THE
LIKES OF WHICH B.C.
HAS NEVER SEEN
BEFORE. AND
HE ARRIVES
NOT A MOMENT
TOO SOON
