August 11, 2019
This t-shirt was gifted to Ian by the SJC Office.
From July 2012 to June 2019, the St. John’s College community was fortunate to work with Dr. Ian Okabe, Assistant Principal for Alumni Engagement. Having lived at the College twice prior to his appointment as Assistant Principal, he was a familiar face that tirelessly supported and mentored our residents. Every evening at the dining hall, Ian could be found at the same table, chatting with residents or hosting SJC alumni.
He has helped gather many stories from our alumni regarding how living at SJC was a transformative experience that changed their lives in a myriad of ways. He was also famous for emailing advice through the SJC list-serve on a wide range of useful topics.
All of us at St. John’s College would like to send our warmest thank you to Ian. We understand Ian continues to be in close touch with many SJC alumni. In fact, he has had dinner with 9 alumni in the six weeks since his departure from SJC. Stay tuned for an interview spotlight on Ian!
More about Ian:
Ian was born in Calgary, Alberta but grew up in the suburbs of Vancouver. He has lived across Canada, and attended universities in both Canada and the United States. Both his Honours Bachelor of Science and Ph.D. are in Geography from the University of British Columbia. His research specialty is climate diagnostics which he applied to discover the North American Monsoon. Ian taught at the University of the Fraser Valley for a decade and retired as Head of the Weather Centre for British Columbia and Yukon.
Once in a while, alumni from St. John’s College make a special visit to the office to say hello, long after they have lived in residence and completed their degrees. They share stories about their careers and better yet, some couples have gotten married and created new journeys together.
