Inaugurations have an aura of expectation, excitement, challenge, and new direction.
They signify change and continuity. But I am convinced that they are praying privately. There they were, the university presidents, many of them wearing flowing sideburns, tailored mustaches, and sculpted beards. They were almost universally described as educators and administrators. They knew that their strength lay in their ability to define their mission and to marshal the knowledge and competence of their faculties and staff to carry it out.