Three Queen’s leaders rack up over $46K in expenses during five-day trip to China

A Redditors freedom of information request has struck again, showing the partial costs of Queen’s recent trip to China. 

Revealed through documents posted from an anonymous Reddit account—which has made multiple posts in the past two years relating to Queen’s travel costs—Arts and Science Dean Bob Lemieux, Smith Engineering Dean Kevin Deluzio, and Vice-Provost (Global Engagement) Ann Tierney cumulatively racked up roughly $46,215 in expenses on their October trip to China. The costs were largely attributed to flights, although luxury hotels and limousine rides also added to the expenses. 

In a statement to The Journal, the University confirmed the documents’ legitimacy and explained the trip was part of an effort to recruit international students. 

“Since 2019, Queen’s international undergraduate enrolment has declined from 12 per cent to the current rate of 7 per cent. This has limited the University’s ability to enrich our campus community with the diversity of perspectives that international students bring, while limiting the university’s ability to grow revenue,” Queen’s wrote. 

In this vein, the University sent a delegation of nine Queen’s senior leaders from Oct. 23 to 28 as part of an annual trip “to advance the University’s profile in China, expand academic partnerships, enhance student recruitment, deepen alumni engagement and advance philanthropic efforts.”  

“The delegation activities included two major Queen’s-led events, one in Beijing, the other in Hong Kong, university partner meetings, high school counsellor engagements and alumni relations activities. As a result of the delegation and activities, several partnership agreements are being pursued to expand academic pathways and collaboration.” 

The University confirmed that they spent $65,000 on the delegation’s events and activities. This included the Queen’s Alumni and Friends Reception, the Queen’s Autumn Banquet, a high school guidance counsellor event, a senior leader alumni dinner, domestic travel for delegates within China, presentation materials and collateral for the delegation, as well as event photography.  

The University was unable to provide the total travel expenses for the entire nine delegates from Queen’s, citing the quick turnaround. 

According to the statement, all travel expenses submitted for this trip were reviewed and processed in accordance with the Travel and Expense Reimbursement Policy.  

Lemieux spent about $10,348 on three flights, all business class, including a two-hour and 20-minute domestic Chinese flight. These were all reimbursed, despite the policy claiming travel must be in economy unless there’s documented medical reasons or continuous air travel exceeding nine hours. 

“In this case, permission to use business class if required was approved verbally at a planning meeting in advance of the delegation,” Queen’s wrote. 

In total, Lemieux spent about $15,419 on the trip, which included $1,659 at the luxury hotel Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong, and $652.65 at a Four Seasons in Beijing. He also purchased two limousine rides, both with purchase locations in Waterloo, for $205 and $185. 

Deluzio racked up the highest bill of the three, spending about $19,534 in total, including $12,430 on flights. For lodging, the engineering dean spent about $2,128 at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, $1,377 at the Mandarin Oriental, and $928 at the Four Seasons, totaling about $4,433 in hotel expenses for the five-day trip. There was also a $33.90 alcohol charge outlined in the document, but the University confirmed it was a personal expense that wasn’t reimbursed. 

Tierney spent the least overall, with her trip costing about $11,228. She spent $8,823 on flights, and just over $2,000 on hotels. 

The documents also show that Tierney forgot to request permission for a business class flight purchase, which she apologized for in an e-mail to Provost Matthew Evans, as he’s responsible for approving all non-economy flights. She requested retroactive approval for this purchase, which Evans granted, saying, “Completely understand the need.” 

Given the travel policy explicitly prohibits luxury hotels, Queen’s explained the lodging selection was based on where the events were taking place in order to maximize delegates time and facilitate meetings. 

“Hotels were selected based on the objectives of the major events taking place in each city. The Beijing Autumn Banquet was held at the Four Seasons, and the Queen’s Alumni and Friends Reception in Hong Kong took place at the Mandarin Oriental,” Queen’s wrote. “Rooms for delegates were secured as part of a negotiated package rate, ensuring preferred pricing while supporting the relationship-building and business and partnership development objectives of the university. “ 

The University acknowledged the importance of economic responsibility, given the stressed financial state of the University, but stood behind the expenses. 

“We are operating in a period of financial constraint, and prudent stewardship of university resources is critically important. At the same time, strategic travel for in-person engagement and relationship-building delivers outcomes that virtual meetings cannot. It is an important part of our academic mission and can represent a meaningful investment in advancing the university’s reputation, recruitment efforts, overall impact, and financial position.” 

Queen’s claimed that these delegations are a customary and necessary part of higher education. 

Tags

Administration, Ann Tierney, Interim Dean Bob Lemieux, Kevin deluzio, travel costs

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