The Queen’s Board of Trustees recently approved the university’s 2017-18 Financial Statements – a formal document which details how the university earned and spent its money in the last fiscal year.

As these Consolidated Financial Statements detail, during the 2017-18 fiscal year Queen's achieved a consolidated surplus of $74.9 million.

This surplus was primarily the result of higher than anticipated student enrolments in degree and non-degree programs, and also reflects the efforts of faculties and shared services to help the university manage its finances and plan for future strategic investments.  It also reflects anticipated surpluses to accommodate capital project financing.

“These financial results put us in good stead and will allow Queen's to make prudent investments into our strategic priorities,” says Donna Janiec, Vice-Principal (Finance and Administration). “These include our faculty renewal plan which will see us hire 200 new faculty over five years; new diversity, inclusivity and reconciliation initiatives; and ongoing investments aimed at supporting research excellence across Queen's.”

As the statement outlines, Queen's is actively assessing and managing a number of ongoing financial risks. Along with other universities in the province, Queen's has a significant deferred maintenance backlog. Further, university revenues are largely decided by grant and tuition rates, which are controlled by the provincial and federal governments.

The university also continues to address its financially unsustainable pension plan as together with the University of Toronto, the University of Guelph and employee groups, we have designed a new jointly sponsored pension plan, the University Pension Plan Ontario (UPP). Once established, other Ontario universities will have the option of joining the UPP.

Ms. Janiec says these financial challenges are taken into account in the university’s operational plans and governance oversight. The senior leadership team continues to monitor and mitigate the risks to help manage Queen’s long-term financial competitiveness.

“Under the leadership of Principal Daniel Woolf, Queen's has worked hard over the past nine years to achieve a strong financial position and it is now serving us well,” says Ms. Janiec. “This coming year, we will open a new building on campus, Mitchell Hall. It will be a hub for wellness and innovation activities and, as with all things at Queen's, it will feature a seamless blend of our heritage and traditions with the latest modern thinking and design. It is a fitting symbol of the progress underway at our university and the bright future we are navigating towards together.

To read the Financial Statement 2017-18, visit the Financial Services website.