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As you are aware, President Santa Ono is leaving in mid-October to become President of the University of Michigan. As the Board of Governors prepares to commence the search for UBC’s next President and Vice-Chancellor, we are pleased to announce that Dr. Deborah Buszard has been appointed as Interim President and Vice-Chancellor.
Dr. Buszard held the position of Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Principal of our UBC Okanagan campus between 2012 and 2020. In that capacity she provided overall leadership to UBC Okanagan and was a core member of UBC’s executive leadership team.
Originally from the UK, Dr. Buszard’s research background is in plant science with a focus on fruit crops, and has current scholarly interests in global agriculture and food innovation, sustainability, and organizational and system transformation. Prior to joining UBC in 2012, she was a founding member of the College of Sustainability at Dalhousie University and served as Dean of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Associate Vice-Principal of McGill University’s Macdonald campus.
Dr. Buszard begins her tenure as Interim President on October 14 and will continue in the role until the new President and Vice-Chancellor has been appointed. We look forward to working with her to continue progressing the university’s core purpose of teaching and research as well as furthering key strategic initiatives including Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence, Sustainability and Climate Action, and Indigenous Reconciliation and Engagement. We are confident that, in partnership with the UBC Executive and the Deans, Dr. Buszard will build on the success of recent years and continue to grow UBC’s reputation as a globally-leading centre of teaching, learning and research.
As we welcome Dr. Buszard into this role, we would like to once again thank our outgoing President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Santa Ono, for his dedication and commitment to the university. We wish him every success at the University of Michigan.
We look forward to providing further updates about the President search as it progresses.
Nancy McKenzie
Chair, UBC Board of Governors
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