With action on the leadership situation seemingly near its final stages and the resignations slowing, Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy’s (FALA) focus is now moving toward rebuilding.
Abigail Kessler
Reporter - Education, Health
A Sunrise police officer was arrested Saturday on child pornography charges, the department said in a news release.
An Internal Affairs investigation of Carl Haller, 39, began Jan. 30, following allegations that he had viewed child pornography on personal electronic devices, the release states. Sunrise Police are working with the FBI to forensically examine his devices.
Findings from the investigation gave the police probable cause to arrest Haller on charges of using an electronic device to view child pornography, intentionally viewing child pornography, and tampering with evidence.
Haller is now on administrative leave without pay, according to the release. He was originally placed on administrative leave with pay on Feb. 2, according to a police department memo to Haller.
Since the investigation began, Haller has not had any interaction with the public “in any official capacity,” according to the release. His police identification, badge and firearms were all taken from him.
“We understand this information is very concerning but we want to assure the community that swift action has been taken and the safety of the public is always our top priority,” the release states. “The actions demonstrated by Haller do not reflect the character and professionalism that is expected of the men and women of this agency.”
Sunrise police union attorney Robert Buschel will not be representing Haller in the criminal case, Buschel confirmed in a text Saturday. He did not know whether Haller had hired outside counsel.
Haller joined the department in March 2016. A Florida Department of Law Enforcement record does not show Haller was employed with any other police agency in the state prior to joining the Sunrise Police Department.
Haller has not previously been disciplined since he was hired in 2016, police department records show. He was investigated internally in 2017 for a harassment complaint and after a shooting in 2018.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported in August 2018 that Sunrise officers fatally shot Karl Nilsen, 33, who was armed, while responding to a domestic disturbance.
Haller was exonerated in both earlier internal affairs cases.
He was booked into Broward County Main Jail on Saturday.
The Sunrise Police Department encourages anyone that may have any information about the case to contact the department at 954-809-4540.
This is a developing story, so check back for updates. Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.
©2023 South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Visit sun-sentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
In January, the school’s board hired three longtime educators to provide guidance and fill in some of the administrative gaps for the rest of the school year while it is working to develop and approve new leadership structures and practices.
Focuses of those improvements, according to some of the school’s current leaders, include student retention, staff voice and explorations of new leadership structures.
Students walk between classes on a mid-February morning at Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy.
Building trust
Many involved in the situation said one of the first steps FALA would need to take moving forward involved increased transparency, and to build trust between the board and school staff.
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Former ESS director Christina Wolfe, for example, said that would have to start with a sincere apology from the board, followed by looking into the impact of its actions and ways to “make it right.”
“I’d want to see the board say, ‘This got out of hand. We got scared and reacted from a place of fear,’” she said. “ ... I don’t think anyone can really understand the power you own by acknowledging where you have made a misstep and taking the steps to rectify that. ... People are dying to hear that right now.”
The board’s vice president, Kyle Winfree, said a mediation process would likely be needed to build trust, but coming to a shared understanding first was necessary.
“I think we really need to look at first finding an agreement or some degree of agreement around what happened,” he said. “I think there are very differing perspectives on that right now, [and] if we continue differing perspectives of what happened, no amount of mediation or restorative justice ... will be able to resolve that.”
Jim Burton is one of two new board members at FALA this month.
He has a child at the school and said he decided to join because he thought he could use his background in program and risk management (from 20 years in wildland firefighting) to help FALA through its transition.
For him, the first step after taking on the role was to listen and learn as much as he could. He’s also been spending a lot of time helping on campus since joining the board, as “the biggest task is ensuring stability.”
Burton saw the process of rebuilding trust as “fairly easy,” requiring mostly increased communication and time spent building relationships.
“Mistrust is typically because there’s a breakdown in communications, so to fix trust is to increase communications,” he explained. “It’s also to be accountable as a leader in those things that you’ve been part of — right, wrong or indifferent. As a board member, three weeks in, I accept full responsibility for where we’re at on the board, but I also can make the promise that it’s going to change ... to being more transparent, more involved, more understanding and more caring.”
FALA Executive Director Eli Cohen similarly referenced a need for transparency as the first step in the process of moving toward “community reconciliation.”
Both Burton and Winfree mentioned student enrollment and retention as a key focus at the school currently, saying the board was looking at ways to increase both.
In group letters and meeting comments, staff and students had also expressed a need for an increased voice — which has started to be seen in exact meetings, with student leaders and staff advocates being given an opportunity to present (the Jan. 23 meeting is an example of this).
In an email to the Daily Sun, James Yih, the board’s president, also mentioned upcoming engagement with various members of the FALA community “to establish a vision for how we collectively want FALA to deliver a phenomenal student experience.”
“In my time serving on the board of directors, that has not been done before; we have not yet collectively discussed our hopes and dreams for our students and the school,” he wrote. “After establishing a community-created vision, we can then implement both large-scale and small-scale ideas to support the cause.”
Winfree noted wanting to support a staff vision for the school in discussion of its long-term plans.
“I think the board wants to help ensure that vision looks like it will have tangible artifacts or output from it,” he said, “but if staff have a vision of how we bring up enrollments and a good plan, great. Let’s do it, let’s figure out how to resource and support.”
A few things he mentioned working on were previous efforts that had been put on hold by the situation — such as additional STEM opportunities, supporting students’ post-secondary paths and trying to identify areas where FALA could grow that other local schools might not offer.
Kara Kelty stands in front of the main building in the heart of the FALA campus in Cheshire Friday afternoon.
School improvement
Kara Kelty is about a month into her role as FALA’s school improvement specialist. In this job, she acts as the school’s administrator among a variety of other duties: facilitating ideas and relationships, providing guidance in several areas and occasionally giving advice in board meetings.
“FALA is bigger than any one individual,” she said of her response to the overall situation. “Schools are like ecosystems, so when one component is disrupted ... the other parts have to adjust and align to recalibrate. Any time we focus on personalities instead of mission, vision values, structures and goals, we can easily get off track.
She added: “I believe my primary function is to reground all of the stakeholders in the vision to identify roles and accountability, and cultivate collaboration and resources to build a strong school environment.”
She has years of experience in both education and leadership — serving two terms on Flagstaff City Council and one on Flagstaff Unified School District’s board in addition to working as a principal at two different charter schools.
Being both a FALA outsider and longtime Flagstaff resident has put her in a “unique position” to be able to assist the school, she said.
“I completely understand the place FALA holds in this community, so I can appreciate its importance as both a cultural institution and a school,” she said. “At the same time, I’ve not been intricately involved in the past, so I can come in with a fresh set of eyes.”
She said her first few weeks at the school have been devoted to building relationships with students and teachers, saying the level of engagement and talent among the group is encouraging.
As the school’s acting administrator, her work involves balancing the need for a stable environment on a daily basis — which can be challenging considering hitches such as weather or health issues — with looking at ways to plan long-term improvements.
The question Kelty said she has been trying to answer is “what does success look like for our students?” She has been taking a “begin with the end in mind” approach to this question, working backwards from goals to create a plan.
One thing she said she recommended is adding an ex-officio role to the board, specifically to increase student voice, as “I strongly believe students should be involved in decisions that impact them and affect them.”
Kelty said she was thinking in terms of sustainability in her work at FALA, though long-term decisions will be up to its leadership team.
She has been pursuing some new directions for the charter, including qualification as a Title One school, additional CTE offerings and partnering with Coconino Community College to focus more on dual enrollment (rather than AP) classes. Similar to Winfree, she said the process was mostly “identifying priorities and then matching resources to these priorities.”
Filling vacancies
The school is also in the process of filling its openings, both broader consultant roles and specific teaching positions. It can be difficult to hire for educator openings in the middle of the school year, though Burton said FALA has found several ways to fill its gaps with quality employees.
The school still has some vacancies — five were listed on its website as of Feb. 16 — which are in part due to continuing decisions about potential changes to the leadership structures.
“We [also] need to have a good understanding of where we are financially before we start just going and filling the positions,” Burton said. “Some of the positions are critical and need to be filled immediately, and other ones need to see what the organizational structure should look like.”
In addition to the plans for restructuring the ESS department, he said, the board is looking at new ways to structure the leadership model going forward. In mid-January, he was hoping to have more answers “within a month.”
Despite the plans for restructuring in leadership and the ESS department, both Winfree and Burton said no further reductions in force are planned.
“I can say that with absolute certainty for the rest of the school year,” Burton said.
Hand-painted, brightly colored native birds in flight decorate the exterior walls of Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy.
School finances
Burton said FALA will need to go through a transition that he saw as “an opportunity” to look at more efficient organizational structures, for example, and to “reground” FALA in its core values.
The transition won’t be without challenges, though, with Burton specifically mentioning the school’s finances. He is also the board’s new treasurer, a role that works more closely with the budget than before due to FALA’s leadership changes.
He’s in the process of sorting through the school’s finances, which has taken up most of his evenings since starting on the board. While Burton doesn’t have a background in finance, he said his management experience suited him for the role, as was the help he was getting from a previous board treasurer and other experts.
“My current task is first understanding and learning and then strategizing, planning and then carrying out those plans. I don’t understand the full extent of the situation, but I do know enough that it will be challenging,” he said.
In the past, the school’s budget was handled largely by the executive director and staff, with some help from the finance committee, which is led by the board treasurer.
As Burton described it, his work with the school’s finances is primarily “trying to understand where we’ve been, but more importantly where we want to go and where we’ll be and how we’re going to get there.”
That includes sorting through unpaid bills and unmanaged grants, seeking out new grants, and figuring out realistic budget strategies, expectations and projections.
The goal is to come up with a plan to continue improving fiscally so FALA can invest in more curriculum-related items (examples he mentioned were equipment and facilities for art classes like dance, acting and graphic design).
Overall, however, most leaders expressed optimism about FALA’s future.
“FALA is moving forward,” Kelty said. “The teachers have been meeting and planning the schedule for next year, planning course offerings, working very hard to Strengthen upon this school year as you do every year.”
“Certainly in the short term, we will have challenges. In the long term, we’re looking at how we’re going to prosper more than we have in the past,” Burton said, adding that he had given staff a guarantee: “I’m here for the long haul.”
More about FALA can be found at flagarts.com.
A clip from the public comment section of FALA's Dec. 12 board meeting, in which the school's executive director asks the entire board to resign.
LIVERMORE — Selectperson Chairman Mark Chretien said an administrative assistant had been hired at the board meeting Tuesday night, Jan. 31.
Carrie Judd of Livermore will start Thursday, Feb. 9, Chretien said. Her salary will be $57,200, he noted.
“She has been employed at Otis [Federal Credit Union] for more than 20 years, she started as a bank teller,” Chretien stated. Judd is currently a teller supervisor, has no municipal experience, he added.
In other business selectpersons discussed an appeal regarding winter maintenance of Wyman Road. The appeal was made by Ron Guay, an attorney representing Chris and Addie McHugh who live on the road.
The meeting was to be held at 5:15 p.m. Feb. 1 at the Androscoggin County building in Auburn.
A petition for the appeal of municipal action pertaining to winter closing of a portion of Wyman Road in Livermore asked that Livermore continue to maintain the road as it has been historically and to comply with the law by taking necessary steps as the statutory process works out, if the road is to be discontinued, according to a letter commissioners sent to Livermore selectpersons.
“They are fighting that we are only doing our portion,” Selectperson Scott Richmond said. “They want us to do as we had done in the past, do all the way. Our attorney advised us to go and represent ourselves.”
“They are saying we are discontinuing the road through abandonment for winter maintenance,” Selectperson Brett Deyling said. “I would just say that we have a tax map that shows the road being 135 feet long. It’s very clear that we are in fact maintaining our portion of Wyman Road. Not leaving a bank at the end of that portion and allowing the landowner access to his property, his driveway. He can plow his driveway just like everybody else in town.”
In Sept. 2022 selectpersons took no action on closing a section of Wyman Road to winter maintenance, after Chris McHugh and Guay questioned the legality of doing so.
In October, selectpersons voted to continue the process of closing Wyman Road to winter maintenance and snowblow their portion this winter.
At first, no bids were received in October to snowblow the road. Later that month Jamie Roy of Livermore bid $5,000 to clear the dead-end road for each of the next two years and was awarded the contract.
Richmond said they would report back at the next meeting, which is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 14.
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Potential disciplinary or corrective action against both Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy Executive Director Eli Cohen and Christina Wolfe, the school’s Exceptional School Services director, was first on a meeting agenda Oct. 24, 2022, as was potential reassignment for both.
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Through most of the beginning of the process, Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy’s (FALA) Board of Directors did not provide specific details about the reasons for potential discipline, citing a desire to protect Cohen, Wolfe and others involved.
Throughout the process, board members said concerns with enrollment led to looking at staff attrition — which in turn led to scrutiny of exit interviews and contacting former employees. What the board found, Vice President Kyle Winfree said, was concerning enough to put discipline for the two on the next meeting’s agenda.
At the previous meeting (Sept. 27), Cohen had presented enrollment and attrition numbers to the board. During those minutes, enrollment is listed in the “low 260s” and attrition rates are shown to have been rising over the past three years, to a rate of 29.17% in the school year so far.
Cohen and Winfree both estimated that the school’s total number of staff is somewhere in the 40s. With the latest wave of resignations, FALA has now lost a total of 24 employees in the 2022-23 school year so far.
Exit interviews
In response to a request from Cohen that the reasoning be made public (at the time, he stated he was also unaware), board secretary Andy Bessler said in a Dec. 13 meeting that a board examination of exit interviews had revealed allegations of a “pattern of retaliation and fear” that Cohen and Wolfe had both been involved in. Citing privacy concerns, Bessler did not go into more detail at the meeting.
“We first learned of these exit interviews in 2022, and this was all pretty new to the board in the sense of a toxic culture that was being presented,” he said. “There are aspects of that toxic culture that I saw both Eli and Christina playing a hand in, based on not just one source of information, but multiple people. Those patterns were really concerning to me as a parent and as a board member — and because these were of a personal nature, we can’t really speak to that in public.”
Winfree declined to deliver a specific number of exit interviews that mentioned concerns with Cohen and/or Wolfe, due to those individuals’ fear of retaliation. What he did say is the number is more than the five he said Cohen claims, but not the majority. He also said some current staff had expressed concerns with the two, again without giving specific numbers (the Daily Sun has heard from one of these staff members, who asked that their name not be used in this story, also due to concerns about retaliation). Borkan also didn’t share details from the exit interviews, saying they were confidential, but said many referenced concerns about their supervisors — both Cohen and Wolfe.
“The board was rightfully concerned about staff turnover,” he said. “It was high, and it was not just because people were leaving their jobs because of COVID or [being] tired of teaching — there were a half dozen or a dozen that were concerned about [how] the school was run and what their boss was doing, whether that was Christina or Eli.”
One former employee, who asked to remain anonymous, shared their exit interview. Cohen and his preferential treatment of Wolfe was cited as the main reason they left and, when asked whether they would consider working at FALA in the future, they said both would need to be removed first.
“Eli used a divide-and-conquer approach when there were concerns on things like contracts, pay, course offerings, future recommendations — either discouraging group negotiation or outright refusal to meet with groups when it suited him,” they wrote. “Eli talked about the FALA family atmosphere, but in many ways, he treated individuals as unvalued members of the family.”
Wolfe and Cohen were in a relationship for about a year, which started while Wolfe was a teacher in the ESS department; Cohen was not her direct supervisor at the time, but as the school’s director, he did supervise her. Cohen recused himself from hiring for the ESS director position, though Winfree said he was not aware of the relationship until after Wolfe was in the position (Cohen recusing himself from a hiring decision is common enough that he didn’t think to ask for a reason, he said).
When the board brought charges against Cohen on Jan. 12, this relationship was cited as evidence of a lack of judgment on his part.
Wolfe said she had checked the school policies before the relationship started and at the time, there was nothing prohibiting it.
“They found this out in January or February, they more or less gave him a slap on the wrist, they checked in with HR to ensure there hadn’t been any conflict of interest,” she said of the board’s initial response to learning about the relationship, which had ended at that point. “HR went on the record saying no, there wasn’t, and then they offered him a three-year contract at the end of May, early June.”
Other concerns the employee brought up in their exit interview were Cohen’s prioritizing urgent items over higher-level long-term tasks and the lack of a uniform and fair discipline policy.
“It has taken on a life of its own,” said former board treasurer Ron Borkan, who resigned in December due to concerns with how the board had handled situations.
“It is incredibly sad and depressing to leave this way after years of heart and soul given to a school and a vision,” they wrote.
According to Cohen, the former employees contacted as part of the board’s investigation into attrition issues were “close personal friends” of one board member. He also said the board shared meeting agendas with people outside of the school, which Winfree said was not the case.
Wolfe’s understanding of the situation was similar to Cohen’s.
“Five unhappy and disgruntled staff members who had given exit interviews were given an opportunity to addend their interviews and receive direct transcripts of those addended interviews,” she said. “It is my belief that they colluded for the purpose of professional damages against me and [possibly Eli]. Two of those disgruntled staff members are close friends with Kyle Winfree. One of them consistently told untrue statements about me to my staff — which created significant trust issues and interpersonal issues in my department this year.”
Staff concerns
On Jan. 5, Cohen said the reasons for his reassignment were still unclear, despite his repeated requests for transparency. He had a few “informed conjectures,” ranging from the general “toxicity” at the school and unspecified issues in the ESS department to a staff meeting in 2021 where he’s “pretty sure” he both swore and yelled in response to finding out that a student had heard a false rumor about him.
“If you want to call that retaliation, sure,” he said. “But that’s the only thing I can think of. ... No one was given improvement plans that shouldn’t, no one was disciplined that shouldn’t, no one was given more work or penalized benefits.”
Staff accounts of problems at the school are similarly diffuse, including both overall concerns about leadership and detailed complaints about specific events and practices since at least 2019.
This can also be seen in the Jan. 12 meeting where the board discussed bringing charges against Cohen; while not as numerous, several concerns about a range of issues were brought up.
A few commonly mentioned items are Cohen and Wolfe’s relationship, Cohen’s handling of school finances, Cohen’s lack of background in education, a previous PIP from 2019 and a variety of communication issues, including with a grievance document signed by about 15 staff in 2020.
This document has a two-column format, contrasting expectations for the executive director with “evidence of failure to perform” and lists dozens of specific concerns over 23 pages.
Cohen said those concerns are a mix of “valid” and “just personal” complaints that sometimes contradict each other.
Four people cited in this, including both Cohen and Winfree, mentioned FALA’s high turnover in leadership positions as either evidence or a cause of the problems.
Jed Hayes, who was the school’s dean for a year in 2019, said FALA’s leadership — and similar interschool divisions to what is currently happening — was his primary reason for not continuing to work there. His exit interview was not among those reviewed by the board, as he said he was not given one.
“When I came to FALA, I saw a person in Eli that very much wanted to do good and make change. I think that what happened unfortunately is that change isn’t always welcomed,” he said.
Cohen’s first few years as FALA’s director were met with “animosity” from teachers and the board, Hayes said. But because he lacked a background in education, Cohen was not able to respond effectively.
While most of the allegations he’d heard against Cohen were “hearsay,” Hayes found a few things he’d experienced concerning — Topics like administrative decisions not going through proper channels, or being given directives he wasn’t comfortable with. Without giving specific examples (due to privacy concerns), Hayes said some of these had to do with staffing changes, scheduling conflicts and the number of sections teachers were given.
“I often felt like I was given directives to go and deliver really bad information without having gone through the democratic process,” he said. “And when I would push back on that, you’re met with a really interesting thing where you’re kind of cut out, you’re no longer in the triad of leadership or whatever it is. I think there are concerns similar to that [now]: when you present critical opinions of things that are happening there, you are met with an adverse work environment.”
Without addressing those issues, Hayes said, he didn’t think FALA would be able to move forward.
“If there’s division, there’s a reason for that division, and to simply say that it’s just disgruntled employees is to ignore that everybody comes into a dialogue with reasons,” he said.
While teacher Allison Gruber’s reasons for leaving FALA in 2021 were health-related, she said she did not pursue an alternative working plan due to concerns with Cohen. She said the board contacted her for an exit interview in the fall, but did not ask for any specific information.
In May 2020, Gruber said she was among a group of staff that called a meeting with Cohen in order to help him “shore up” the school during COVID.
“We were hemorrhaging students and faculty who are more veteran, seasoned teachers,” she said. “ … I’ve been in education for 25 years and that was true of many of my colleagues who left around the same year I did. We were noticing some really big failings, and, in addition to administrative failings, it seemed Mr. Cohen had checked out completely from interest in what was happening at the school.”
After that meeting, Gruber said he blocked her on all social media platforms and stopped replying to emails — even work-related ones. So, she said, she could not have stayed under those conditions, even if she had wanted to.
When asked, Cohen said there were several committees formed to respond to COVID that summer, but he didn’t remember anything similar to this meeting. He did say he had blocked some on social media, including staff members.
Gruber had also been following the current situation and wasn’t optimistic about FALA’s future.
“It’s not Flagstaff Arts and Leadership, it’s a body on a ventilator,” she said of the school now. “Basically what I see are people collecting paychecks, especially the executive director, who has no interest or investment in that school or the safety of the students in the school.”
According to Borkan, enough employees mentioned concerns with both Wolfe and Cohen to require further investigation. What he disagreed with is the way the board went through that process.
“You can’t change everything because some departing employee says there’s a problem,” he said. “But when a bunch of them say there’s a problem, it’s something worth looking into. It’s the board’s responsibility to make the school run well, so it can be a place of education and teaching and safety for the students, so when concerns are raised, they need to be analyzed and worked on — but as I said, this process got out of hand really fast.”
Staff support for administration
Many current FALA employees, and the majority of those who made comment at board meetings related to the situation, said none of the allegations reflect their experience with Cohen. Several even said working with him was one of their best experiences as educators.
School counselor Chad Fields said he appreciated the culture Cohen and Wolfe had worked to create at the school, describing it as “connected, authentic, genuine, understanding [and] compassionate.”
“I don’t want to sound too hyperbolic, but honestly, having worked in schools for the last eight years, it’s been so refreshing to work for them,” he said. “ ... I felt like I was working with people who saw me professionally and personally, and were willing to work with me as an integrated person … [which] has been really rare for me in education.”
He said he didn’t have many complaints about Cohen and Wolfe in terms of leadership except for the typical things that come up at work — issues like being busy, meaning they had less time for support — and that their absence has had a major impact on his work.
Another current employee, who asked to remain anonymous due to fear of retaliation, wrote to the Daily Sun:
“Many of us think Eli is the best boss we have ever had. Throughout this, he has stuck up for us for the sake of doing what is right,” they said. “Unfortunately the board has loved it to now be able to throw insubordination or unprofessionalism above him.”
They added: “He truly goes above and beyond for FALA, but that is rarely recognized because he doesn’t ask for that or make it obvious how much time and effort he puts in. He truly will be a loss, and I fear for FALA if he is let go.”
The cities of Sun Valley and Hailey are partnering to address a shared problem: Affordable workforce housing.
In a special meeting Tuesday night, the Sun Valley City Council authorized Mayor Peter Hendricks to purchase 2 acres of land in Hailey that includes the Ellsworth Inn, a 1900s-era building of local historical significance, for the future development of permanent living accommodations for city employees and other workers throughout Blaine County.
Upon completion of the sale, Sun Valley intends to lease the 4,800-square-foot inn, now operating as a bed and breakfast, to a single employer for immediate workforce housing, while working with Hailey on a “master plan process to develop the site,” City Administrator Jim Keating told the Times-News on Wednesday.
The inn and the five parcels of land around it had been for sale “off and on” for months and “in and out of contract,” Hailey City Administrator Lisa Horowitz said. She credited Sun Valley for stepping up to address the “dire need” for more affordable housing options.
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“This will serve our whole valley — Hailey, Sun Valley, Ketchum, Bellevue,” Horowitz told the Times-News. “We all need housing.”
The sale is scheduled to close March 17, Keating said.
In a city-issued news release, Hendricks said Sun Valley had put out a call for “actionable” projects to address the “countywide” problem of workforce housing, calling it “paramount” to the future of the Wood River Valley. Hailey answered, he said.
“Had it not been for the initiative of Hailey officials to think creatively, to act with speed and diligence, and commit to this partnership, this transaction would not have occurred,” Hendricks said.
The Ellsworth Inn, with nine rooms, and two smaller cottages are the only buildings included in the real estate deal, Keating said. The current zoning would permit 10 additional units to be developed on the land, he said, though any future construction would be guided by a master plan agreement between the cities and shaped through public input.
“Housing is a real challenge,” Keating said. “This action is a step by the council to work with the community to find a solution.”
Mayor Martha Burke said Hailey would work “enthusiastically and cooperatively” with Sun Valley in planning.
“This is a once in-a-generation opportunity to bring a legacy property into public hands,” Burke said in the release. “We are thrilled that the city of Sun Valley has this property under contract, and we look forward to joint planning with our partners.”
The New Mexico State University men's basketball coach has been fired days after the program was suspended for the rest of the season amid an investigation into alleged hazing incidents, the school's chancellor said.
Dan E. Arvizu, chancellor of New Mexico State University, said he decided to terminate coach Greg Heiar earlier on Tuesday, after learning of the hazing allegations involving the students on the team.
"As I've stated previously, hazing has no place on our campus, and those found responsible will be held accountable for their actions," Arvizu said in a statement. "I am committed to the safety and well-being of all members of our campus community, as well as to the integrity of our university."
Then-LSU assistant coach Greg Heiar, center, shouts from the sideline during the team's NCAA men's college basketball tournament game against Yale in Jacksonville, Fla., March 21, 2019.
Stephen B. Morton/AP, FILE
The chancellor added that the school will work to "ensure that support systems are in place to prevent this from happening again."
Arvizu said he informed the university's director of athletics, Mario Moccia, of his decision Tuesday afternoon.
Heiar, the former Northwest Florida State coach, was hired by New Mexico State University in March 2022.
ABC News was not immediately able to reach Heiar for comment.
In this July 21, 2020, file photo, a New Mexico State player shoots a three at a pre-season practice for the NMSU men's basketball team in Las Cruces, N.M.
Nathan J Fish/Sun-News, Las Cruces Sun-News via USA Today Network, FILE
The decision to terminate Heiar comes two days after the chancellor announced he had suspended the men's basketball program for the rest of the season.
"This action is clearly needed, especially after receiving additional facts and reviewing investigation reports related to the hazing allegations involving student-athletes on the team," Arvizu said in a statement on Sunday, adding that it's "time for this program to reset."
The allegations surfaced Friday as the men's basketball team was in Southern California preparing for a game against California Baptist University in Riverside, Arvizu said in a statement Saturday night. He said he immediately suspended the basketball program, canceled Saturday's game and placed the coaching staff on paid administrative leave.
"We took this action after receiving reports of alleged hazing incidents within our men's basketball team," Arvizu said in his statement.
According to a New Mexico State University Police Department report, a player reported the alleged incidents on Friday, claiming they have been "hazed" by three teammates in the locker room of both home and away games for several months, usually in front of the entire team.
Arvizu said the players and coaching staff were called back to the school in Las Cruces and interviewed by university personnel specially trained to conduct investigations into hazing incidents.
"The most important job I have as Chancellor of the NMSU System is to ensure our students are safe and protected from harm," Arvizu said. "That's why I was so heartbroken and sickened to hear about these hazing allegations."
Arvizu did not provide details of the incidents or say when they occurred. In his statement, Arvizu added, "hazing is a despicable act. It humiliates and degrades someone and has the potential to cause physical and emotional harm, or even death."
"Sadly, hazing can become part of an organization's culture left unchecked," Arvizu said. "NMSU policy strictly prohibits hazing, in all forms, and it's something we simply will not tolerate."
School personnel were "recently informed of new allegations" involving the potential violations of school policy, the Las Cruces university said in a statement.
The New Mexico State University Board of Regents said in a statement that it "supports the action taken by the university leaders and is confident a full and thorough investigation will be conducted." The board noted it was informed of the suspension Friday evening.
In this Oct. 29, 2019, file photo, the NMSU men's basketball team practices at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, N.M.
Nathan J Fish/Sun-News, Las Cruces Sun-News via USA Today Network, FILE
In a statement on the university's website, the Board of Regents announced it will hold a closed-door meeting on Tuesday on matters that "may include discussion of personally identifiable information about individual NMSU students."
The men's basketball team competes in the NCAA Division I Western Athletic Conference.
In a statement Sunday night, WAC Commissioner Brian Thornton said: "The Western Athletic Conference is committed to both the mental and physical well-being of all of our student-athletes. We are saddened and disappointed that hazing continues to be a part of our society at any level."
"Over the last 48 hours, our staff and membership have been working to find a solution that best protects every WAC student-athlete and institution," Thornton said. "We fully support New Mexico State's decision to suspend the rest of its season, as they take this time to focus on the health and safety of their student-athletes."
The allegations are unrelated to a fatal shooting involving one of the men's basketball team players that occurred in Albuquerque late last year, the school said.
On Nov. 19, forward Mike Peake was allegedly involved in a pre-dawn shootout on the University of New Mexico's campus while in Albuquerque for a game against the school, New Mexico State University officials said.
Brandon Travis, 19, and three other University of New Mexico students allegedly lured Peake to the campus to assault him, New Mexico State Police said.
Travis allegedly confronted and shot Peake, 21, who returned gunfire, police said. Travis was pronounced dead at the scene, and Peake was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
A 17-year-old was arrested and charged with aggravated battery and conspiracy in connection to the shooting, and no additional arrests have been announced. The incident remains under investigation by state police.
That weekend's Albuquerque game and a Dec. 3 rematch in Las Cruces were canceled, and Peake was suspended from the team.
In December, New Mexico State University announced it will launch an independent investigation into the events and university response involving the shooting.
ABC News' Nick Kerr contributed to this report.
|
The information in this document is based on the unaudited interim financial results of Sun Life Financial Inc. ("SLF Inc.") for the period ended December 31, 2022. SLF Inc., its subsidiaries and, where applicable, its joint ventures and associates are collectively referred to as "the Company", "Sun Life", "we", "our", and "us". We manage our operations and report our financial results in five business segments: Canada, United States ("U.S."), Asset Management, Asia, and Corporate. Reported net income (loss) refers to Common shareholders' net income (loss) determined in accordance with IFRS. Unless otherwise noted, all amounts are in Canadian dollars. |
TORONTO, Feb. 8, 2023 /CNW/ - Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX: SLF) (NYSE: SLF) today announced its results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2022.
-
Q4'22 reported net income of $951 million decreased 12% from Q4'21; reported ROE(1) was 15.1%.
-
Q4'22 underlying net income(1) of $990 million increased 10% from Q4'21; underlying ROE(1) was 15.7%.
-
2022 reported net income of $3,060 million decreased 22% from 2021; reported ROE(1) was 12.5%.
-
2022 underlying net income(1) of $3,674 million increased 4% from 2021; underlying ROE(1) was 15.1%.
"Sun Life delivered strong fourth quarter results led by earnings growth in the U.S. and Canada," said Kevin Strain, President and CEO of Sun Life. "Our balanced and diversified business model supported solid 2022 results, including an 18% increase in insurance sales, strong performance from our U.S. and Canada businesses, and $21.5 billion of inflows at SLC Management."
"In 2022, we continued to drive our Client Impact Strategy, helping our approximately 85 million global Clients achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives. We built new digital tools and processes and added solutions to elevate Client experience and their evolving needs. We also expanded our scale and capabilities by effectively deploying capital through new bancassurance agreements in Asia, acquiring Advisors Asset Management Inc., a U.S. high-net-worth retail distribution firm under SLC Management, as well as forming a strategic asset management partnership with Phoenix Group as part of the intended sale of our UK business, and began the integration of DentaQuest in the U.S. We ended the year with a strong capital position and are positioned well for the transition to IFRS 17. All of this is driven by our exceptional people and validated by the recognition we've received as a Great Place to Work in many countries where we do business."
|
Quarterly results |
Year-to-date |
||||
|
Profitability |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
2022 |
2021 |
|
|
Reported net income - Common shareholders ($ millions) |
951 |
1,078 |
3,060 |
3,934 |
|
|
Underlying net income ($ millions)(1) |
990 |
898 |
3,674 |
3,533 |
|
|
Reported EPS ($)(2) |
1.62 |
1.83 |
5.21 |
6.69 |
|
|
Underlying EPS ($)(1)(2) |
1.69 |
1.53 |
6.27 |
6.03 |
|
|
Reported return on equity ("ROE")(1) |
15.1 % |
18.0 % |
12.5 % |
17.1 % |
|
|
Underlying ROE(1) |
15.7 % |
15.0 % |
15.1 % |
15.4 % |
|
|
Growth |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
2022 |
2021 |
|
|
Insurance sales ($ millions)(1) |
1,843 |
1,606 |
4,321 |
3,674 |
|
|
Wealth sales and asset management gross flows ($ millions)(1) |
45,754 |
56,708 |
204,113 |
228,408 |
|
|
Value of new business ("VNB") ($ millions)(1) |
468 |
494 |
1,253 |
1,346 |
|
|
Assets under management ("AUM") ($ billions)(1)(3) |
1,326 |
1,445 |
|||
|
Financial Strength |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
|||
|
LICAT ratios (at period end)(4) |
|||||
|
Sun Life Financial Inc. |
130 % |
145 % |
|||
|
Sun Life Assurance(5) |
127 % |
124 % |
|||
|
Financial leverage ratio (at period end)(1)(6) |
25.1 % |
25.5 % |
|||
|
___________ |
|
|
(1) |
Represents a non-IFRS financial measure. For more details, see the Non-IFRS Financial Measures section in this document and in our MD&A for the period ended December 31, 2022 ("2022 Annual MD&A"). |
|
(2) |
All earnings per share ("EPS") measures refer to fully diluted EPS, unless otherwise stated. |
|
(3) |
AUM is comprised of General Funds and Segregated Funds on our Statements of Financial Position, and other third-party assets managed by the Company ("other AUM"). For more details, see the Non-IFRS Financial Measures section in this document and in our 2022 Annual MD&A. |
|
(4) |
For further information on the Life Insurance Capital Adequacy Test ("LICAT"), see section E - Financial Strength in this document. Our LICAT ratios are calculated in accordance with OSFI-mandated guideline, Life Insurance Capital Adequacy Test. |
|
(5) |
Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada ("Sun Life Assurance") is SLF Inc.'s principal operating life insurance subsidiary. |
|
(6) |
For 2021, amount included $2.0 billion of proceeds from the subordinated debt offerings completed in November 2021, of which $1.5 billion did not qualify as LICAT capital at issuance as it was subject to contractual terms requiring us to redeem the underlying securities in full, if the closing of the DentaQuest acquisition did not occur. We completed the acquisition of DentaQuest on June 1, 2022. |
Financial and Operational Highlights - Quarterly Comparison (Q4'22 vs. Q4'21)
Our strategy is focused on key business segments, where we aim to be a leader in the markets in which we operate.
|
($ millions, unless otherwise noted) |
||||||||||||
|
Reported net income (loss)- |
Underlying net income (loss)(1) |
Insurance sales(1) |
Wealth sales and asset |
|||||||||
|
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
change |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
change |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
change |
Q4'22 |
Q4'21 |
change |
|
|
Canada |
367 |
356 |
3 % |
324 |
266 |
22 % |
246 |
241 |
2 % |
6,584 |
5,676 |
16 % |
|
U.S. |
110 |
85 |
29 % |
240 |
72 |
233 % |
1,221 |
1,020 |
20 % |
— |
— |
— |
|
Asset Management |
322 |
140 |
130 % |
313 |
382 |
(18) % |
— |
— |
— |
37,380 |
46,986 |
(20) % |
|
Asia |
98 |
446 |
(78) % |
152 |
130 |
17 % |
376 |
345 |
9 % |
1,790 |
4,046 |
(56) % |
|
Corporate |
54 |
51 |
nm(2) |
(39) |
48 |
nm(2) |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
|
Total |
951 |
1,078 |
(12) % |
990 |
898 |
10 % |
1,843 |
1,606 |
15 % |
45,754 |
56,708 |
(19) % |
|
(1) |
Represents a non-IFRS financial measure. See the Non-IFRS Financial Measures section in this document and in the 2022 Annual MD&A. |
|
(2) |
Not meaningful. |
Reported net income of $951 million decreased $127 million or 12% from prior year, primarily reflecting unfavourable market-related impacts and DentaQuest integration costs, partially offset by the impact of the Canada Tax Rate Change(1), fair value changes on MFS'(2) share-based payment awards and ACMA(3). Prior year reported net income included a gain on the IPO of our India asset management joint venture partially offset by an increase to SLC Management's acquisition-related liabilities(4).
Underlying net income of $990 million(5) increased $92 million or 10% from prior year, driven by business growth and experience in protection and health and contribution from the DentaQuest acquisition. This was partially offset by lower wealth and asset management earnings reflecting declines in global equity markets, and a higher effective tax rate compared to prior year.
Reported ROE was 15.1% and underlying ROE was 15.7% (Q4'21 - 18.0% and 15.0%, respectively). SLF Inc. ended the quarter with a LICAT ratio of 130%.
In 2022, Sun Life was certified as a Great Place to Work® in Canada, the U.S., Vietnam, and the Philippines, recognizing our inclusive culture and commitment to our people. This certification is in addition to our Asia Service Centres in India and the Philippines, which have been certified for several years. Sun Life fosters an equitable environment where diversity is championed, in addition to offering resources and flexibility to support mental, physical and professional well-being. In the U.S., we received five top workplace recognitions in 2022, including Sun Life U.S. being named a 2022 Top Place to Work by The Boston Globe for the fifth time in a row. SLC Management was also named 2022 Best Places to Work in Money Management for the third year in a row by Pensions & Investments(6).
Canada: A leader in health, wealth, and insurance
Canada reported net income of $367 million increased $11 million or 3% from prior year, mainly driven by the impact of the Canada Tax Rate Change(1) and an increase in underlying net income, partially offset by a decrease in the value of real estate investments and lower equity market gains.
Underlying net income of $324 million increased $58 million or 22% from prior year, primarily driven by experience-related items and higher investment-related earnings. Growth in protection and health was mostly offset by lower wealth results reflecting declines in equity markets. Experience in the fourth quarter included favourable morbidity mainly reflecting lower claims volumes and higher margins in Sun Life Health, and investment gains.
Canada insurance sales were $246 million, up 2% year-over-year, as higher large case group benefits sales in Sun Life Health were mostly offset by lower individual participating whole life insurance sales. Canada wealth sales were $7 billion, up 16%, driven by higher defined contribution(7) sales in Group Retirement Services ("GRS"), partially offset by lower individual wealth sales.
We continue to provide innovative solutions and make it easier for Clients to do business with us. In Q4'22, we published two data driven insight reports for plan sponsors, highlighting how they can better support employees to live healthier lives. These reports offer an in-depth analysis from over 1.5 million plan members, identifying potential health risks and trends. This delivers on our commitment to develop solutions for Clients to take action on their health journey, including our Mental Health Coach, Stress Management and Well-being product, Lumino Health Virtual Care. Also, aligned with our Purpose to help Canadians achieve lifetime financial security, in wealth, we continued to digitize our sponsor base, streamlining their experience and allowing members to leverage digital resources to manage their wealth journey. Digitally active members have higher account balances, higher contributions and are more likely to consolidate their assets with us.
|
__________ |
|
|
(1) |
On December 15, 2022, legislation implementing an additional surtax of 1.5% applicable to banks and life insurers' taxable income in excess of $100 million was enacted in Canada ("Canada Tax Rate Change"). This legislation applies retroactively to the Federal Budget date of April 7, 2022. As a result, total Company and Canada reported net income increased by $127 million and $76 million, respectively, in the fourth quarter, reflected in ACMA and Other adjustments. Refer to section C - Profitability in this document for more information. |
|
(2) |
MFS Investment Management ("MFS"). |
|
(3) |
Assumption changes and management actions ("ACMA"). |
|
(4) |
Reflects the changes in estimated future payments for acquisition-related contingent considerations and options to purchase remaining ownership interests of SLC Management affiliates. |
|
(5) |
Refer to section C - Profitability in this document for more information about experience-related items and to section G - Non-IFRS Financial Measures for a reconciliation between reported net income and underlying net income. |
|
(6) |
Pensions & Investments, a global news source of money management. |
|
(7) |
Defined contribution sales include retained business sales. |
U.S.: A leader in health and benefits
U.S. reported net income of $110 million increased $25 million or 29% from prior year, driven by the increase in underlying net income, partially offset by market-related impacts and DentaQuest integration costs.
Underlying net income of $240 million increased $168 million from prior year, driven by growth across all businesses, contribution from the DentaQuest acquisition and favourable experience-related items. Experience in the quarter included favourable morbidity mainly reflecting lower medical stop-loss and group disability claims volumes, and investment gains, partially offset by mortality due to higher value claims. Compared to prior year, mortality experience in Group Benefits improved significantly due to lower COVID-19-related claims.
Foreign exchange translation led to an increase of $9 million and $17 million in reported net income and underlying net income, respectively.
U.S. insurance sales were $1.2 billion, up 20% year-over-year, driven by higher dental(1) and employee benefits sales, partially offset by lower medical stop-loss sales.
Supporting our strategic priority of helping Clients access the health care and obtain the coverage they need, DentaQuest expanded its Advantage Dental+ care practices with four new dental offices in Florida. These practices are located in areas where members have few dental options, helping to increase access to oral health care in underserved communities.
In addition, we continue to make it easier for Clients to do business with us as we expand our digital connectivity capabilities through Application Programming Interfaces ("API"), which alleviate manual administrative tasks, automate processes, Strengthen accuracy and provide real-time updates. For example, we've made it easier to apply for life insurance through this new digital functionality, and members now complete the process online 97% of the time, compared to 50% completion for those without this capability.
Asset Management: A global leader in both public and alternative asset classes through MFS and SLC Management
Asset Management reported net income of $322 million increased $182 million from prior year, which included a charge for the increase in SLC Management's acquisition-related liabilities(2) in the fourth quarter of 2021. Q4'22 reported net income also reflects a decline in the fair value of MFS' share-based payment awards, mostly offset by the decline in underlying net income.
Underlying net income of $313 million decreased $69 million or 18% from prior year, primarily due to lower results in MFS, largely reflecting declines in global equity markets which contributed to lower average net assets ("ANA"), partially offset by lower variable compensation expenses and higher net investment returns. SLC Management's underlying net income of $38 million decreased $2 million or 5% from prior year. Higher fee-related earnings reflecting strong capital raising and capital deployment across the platform were mostly offset by real estate investment losses.
Foreign exchange translation led to an increase of $21 million and $20 million in reported net income and underlying net income, respectively.
Asset Management ended Q4'22 with $952 billion in AUM, consisting of $742 billion (US$548 billion) in MFS and $210 billion in SLC Management. Total Asset Management net outflows of $12.6 billion in Q4'22 reflected MFS net outflows of approximately $16.1 billion (US$11.9 billion), partially offset by SLC Management net inflows of approximately $3.5 billion.
MFS maintained a leading position within the U.S. retail mutual fund industry, ending the year 10th based on AUM(3). In the fourth quarter of 2022, 97% of MFS' U.S. retail mutual fund assets ranked in the top half of their Morningstar categories based on ten- and five-year performance, and 48% ranked in the top half of their Morningstar categories based on three-year performance. The MFS pre-tax net operating profit margin(4) was 40% for Q4'22, compared to 43% in the prior year, driven by the decline in ANA.
SLC Management is continuing to progress on its climate commitments with a focus on setting interim targets towards net zero greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions by 2050. In Q4'22, InfraRed Capital Partners Inc. ("InfraRed") set interim targets aligned with the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative(5), including to have 70% of in-scope assets(6) aligned or aligning(7) by 2030. In addition, for the 12th consecutive year, BentallGreenOak ("BGO") achieved top performance scores for its global real estate platform in the annual GRESB Real Estate Assessment, demonstrating its leadership in sustainable investing.
|
___________ |
|
|
(1) |
Dental sales include sales from DentaQuest, acquired on June 1, 2022. |
|
(2) |
Reflects the changes in estimated future payments for acquisition-related contingent considerations and options to purchase remaining ownership interests of SLC Management affiliates. |
|
(3) |
According to ISS Market Intelligence Simfund. |
|
(4) |
Represents a non-IFRS financial measure. For more details, see the Non-IFRS Financial Measures section in this document and in the 2022 Annual MD&A. |
|
(5) |
An international group of asset managers committed to supporting the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner. |
|
(6) |
In-scope assets comprise approximately 83% of InfraRed's global AUM as at June 30, 2022. Funds where assets are currently being sold or transferred in line with the original fund strategy have been excluded from the commitment. |
|
(7) |
Aligning towards or aligned to a net zero pathway as defined by criteria set out in the Net Zero Investment Framework. Criteria are asset class-specific. Pathways is the term used to describe the emissions, technologies and investment trajectories that will be needed to deliver net zero. (Paris Aligned Investment Initiative. "Net Zero Investment Framework: Implementation Guide". 2021). |
Asia: A regional leader focused on fast-growing markets
Asia reported net income of $98 million decreased $348 million or 78% from prior year, reflecting a prior year gain from the IPO of our India asset management joint venture and unfavourable market-related impacts in the current year.
Underlying net income of $152 million increased $22 million or 17% from prior year, driven by business growth and experience in protection and health, including improved mortality compared to prior year which included COVID-19-related claims, partially offset by lower fee-based income reflecting equity market declines. Higher new business strain in Hong Kong was offset by new business gains in International and Vietnam.
Foreign exchange translation led to an increase of $5 million and $1 million in reported net income and underlying net income, respectively.
Asia insurance sales were $376 million, up 9% year-over-year, driven by sales growth in India, International, the Philippines and Vietnam, partially offset by lower sales in China and Hong Kong. Asia wealth sales were $2 billion, down 56%, reflecting lower sales in the Philippines, India and Hong Kong.
We continue to deliver on our distribution excellence strategy. In Vietnam, we achieved breakthrough performance by leveraging our bancassurance partnerships and building a professional advisor team with a focus on providing quality and holistic services to fit our Clients' needs, driving strong growth in our agency channel. Building on the foundation for sustainable and profitable growth in Sun Life Asia, in Vietnam, we were one of the fastest growing players among the top 10 life insurers, with Q4'22 agency sales and the number of MDRT(1) qualifiers more than tripling prior year(2).
In January 2023, we announced a 15-year exclusive bancassurance partnership in Hong Kong with Dah Sing Bank ("Dah Sing"), with sales expected to start in July 2023, subject to regulatory processes and approvals. Under this partnership, Sun Life will be the exclusive provider of life insurance solutions to Dah Sing's 570,000 retail banking customers, helping to fulfill their savings and protection needs at different life stages. This is Sun Life's first exclusive bancassurance partnership in Hong Kong and will be a valuable complement to our existing network of over 2,500 expert insurance advisors. Hong Kong is a thriving life insurance hub in Asia and bancassurance is a key distribution channel, accounting for more than 50% of the life insurance distribution mix.
Corporate
Corporate reported net income of $54 million increased $3 million or 6% from prior year, reflecting the net impact of tax-related matters(3) largely offset by the change in underlying net income.
Underlying net loss was $39 million, compared to net income of $48 million in the prior year, reflecting a higher effective tax rate, partially offset by lower expenses.
|
__________ |
|
|
(1) |
Million Dollar Round Table ("MDRT"), a global independent association of the world's leading life insurance and financial services professionals. |
|
(2) |
Based on December 2022 position. |
|
(3) |
Tax related matters include tax-exempt investment income in reported net income and the impact of the Canada Tax Rate Change. On December 15, 2022, legislation implementing an additional surtax of 1.5% applicable to banks and life insurers' taxable income in excess of $100 million was enacted in Canada ("Canada Tax Rate Change"). This legislation applies retroactively to the Federal Budget date of April 7, 2022. As a result, Corporate reported net income increased by $51 million in the fourth quarter, reflected in Other adjustments. Refer to section C - Profitability in this document for more information. |
IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts ("IFRS 17") and IFRS 9 Financial Instruments ("IFRS 9") to be Adopted in 2023
For periods beginning on or after January 1, 2023, we will be adopting IFRS 17, which replaces IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts. IFRS 17 establishes the principles for the recognition, measurement, presentation, and disclosure of insurance contracts. Effective January 1, 2023, we will also be adopting IFRS 9, which replaces IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement.
The adoption of IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 is not expected to have a material impact on our overall business strategies. However, upon transition at January 1, 2022, the changes in measurement of insurance contract liabilities and timing of recognition of earnings, in combination with IFRS 9, are expected to have the following impacts:
-
A net transfer of $4.5 billion from Shareholders' equity, primarily driven by the establishment of the contractual service margin ("CSM") on the balance sheet, among other items.
-
A high single digit decrease(1) in 2022 underlying net income as we restate the comparative year.
On July 21, 2022, OSFI finalized the LICAT guidelines to reflect the IFRS 17 adoption, effective January 1, 2023. The CSM balance will qualify as Tier 1 available capital. We expect a high single digit increase to the LICAT ratio on adoption and we also expect capital generation and capital sensitivities to be relatively unchanged under the new regime(2).
Our medium-term financial objectives(3), following the adoption of IFRS 17 and 9 as at January 1, 2023, will be:
-
Underlying EPS growth: 8-10%
-
Underlying ROE: 18%+ (an increase from 16%+ under IFRS 4)
-
Underlying Dividend payout ratio: 40-50%
We continue to assess the impact that the adoption of IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 will have on our Consolidated Financial Statements and estimates of the financial impacts are subject to change. For additional details, refer to Note 2 in the 2022 Consolidated Financial Statements for the period ended December 31, 2022.
|
__________ |
|
|
(1) |
The amount can be impacted by changes in certain experience-related items that are dependent on economic and/or operating environment factors. This statement is a forward-looking statement within the meaning of applicable securities laws. For more information, see the Forward-looking statements section in this document. |
|
(2) |
This statement is a forward-looking statement within the meaning of applicable securities laws. For more information, see the Forward-looking statements section in this document. |
|
(3) |
Although considered reasonable, we may not be able to achieve our medium-term financial objectives as our assumptions may prove to be inaccurate. Accordingly, our real results could differ materially from our medium-term financial objectives as described above. Our medium-term financial objectives do not constitute guidance. Our medium-term financial objectives are forward-looking non-IFRS financial measures and additional information is provided in the 2022 Annual MD&A in section O - Forward-looking Statements. |
|
Table of Contents |
|||
|
A. |
How We Report Our Results............................................................................................................................................................................................. |
7 |
|
|
B. |
Financial Summary............................................................................................................................................................................................................ |
8 |
|
|
C. |
Profitability......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
9 |
|
|
D. |
Growth............................................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
11 |
|
|
E. |
Financial Strength............................................................................................................................................................................................................. |
13 |
|
|
F. |
Performance by Business Segment.................................................................................................................................................................................. |
15 |
|
|
1. |
Canada.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. |
15 |
|
|
2 |
U.S.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
16 |
|
|
3. |
Asset Management........................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
18 |
|
|
4. |
Asia................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
19 |
|
|
5. |
Corporate.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... |
20 |
|
|
G. |
Non-IFRS Financial Measures.......................................................................................................................................................................................... |
21 |
|
|
H. |
Forward-looking Statements............................................................................................................................................................................................. |
30 |
|
About Sun Life
Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing asset management, wealth, insurance and health solutions to individual and institutional Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of December 31, 2022, Sun Life had total assets under management of $1.33 trillion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.
Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.
A. How We Report Our Results
Sun Life Financial Inc., its subsidiaries and, where applicable, its joint ventures and associates are collectively referred to as "the Company", "Sun Life", "we", "our", and "us". We manage our operations and report our financial results in five business segments: Canada, U.S., Asset Management, Asia, and Corporate. Information concerning these segments is included in our annual and interim consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes ("Annual Consolidated Financial Statements" and "Interim Consolidated Financial Statements", respectively, and "Consolidated Financial Statements" collectively) and annual management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A"). We prepare our Consolidated Financial Statements using International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). Reported net income (loss) refers to Common shareholders' net income (loss) determined in accordance with IFRS.
The information in this document is in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.
1. Use of Non-IFRS Financial Measures
We report certain financial information using non-IFRS financial measures, as we believe that these measures provide information that is useful to investors in understanding our performance and facilitate a comparison of our quarterly and full year results from period to period. These non-IFRS financial measures do not have any standardized meaning and may not be comparable with similar measures used by other companies. For certain non-IFRS financial measures, there are no directly comparable amounts under IFRS. These non-IFRS financial measures should not be viewed in isolation from or as alternatives to measures of financial performance determined in accordance with IFRS. Additional information concerning these non-IFRS financial measures and, if applicable, reconciliations to the closest IFRS measures are available in section G - Non-IFRS Financial Measures in this document, and also in our 2022 Annual MD&A and the Supplementary Financial Information package that are available on www.sunlife.com under Investors - Financial results & reports.
2. Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this document are forward-looking statements within the meaning of certain securities laws, including the "safe harbour" provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities legislation. Additional information concerning forward-looking statements and important risk factors that could cause our assumptions, estimates, expectations and projections to be inaccurate and our real results or events to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements can be found in section H - Forward-looking Statements in this document.
3. Additional Information
Additional information about SLF Inc. can be found in the Consolidated Financial Statements, the Annual and Interim MD&A and SLF Inc.'s Annual Information Form ("AIF") for the year ended December 31, 2022. These documents are filed with securities regulators in Canada and are available at www.sedar.com. SLF Inc.'s Annual Consolidated Financial Statements, Annual MD&A and AIF are filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") in SLF Inc.'s annual report on Form 40-F and SLF Inc.'s Interim MD&A and Interim Consolidated Financial Statements are furnished to the SEC on Form 6-Ks and are available at www.sec.gov.
4. COVID-19 Pandemic Considerations
In early 2020, the world was impacted by COVID-19, which was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The overall impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is still uncertain and dependent on the progression of the virus and on actions taken by governments, businesses and individuals, which could vary by country and result in differing outcomes. Given the extent of the circumstances, it is difficult to reliably measure or predict the potential impact of this uncertainty on our future financial results.
For additional information, refer to section J - Risk Management - 9 - Risks relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in the 2022 Annual MD&A.
B. Financial Summary
|
($ millions, unless otherwise noted) |
Quarterly results |
Year-to-date |
||||
|
Profitability |
Q4'22 |
Q3'22 |
Q4'21 |
2022 |
2021 |
|
|
Net income (loss) |
||||||
|
Reported net income (loss) - Common shareholders |
951 |
466 |
1,078 |
3,060 |
3,934 |
|
|
Underlying net income (loss)(1) |
990 |
949 |
898 |
3,674 |
3,533 |
|
|
Diluted earnings per share ($) |
||||||
|
Reported EPS (diluted) |
1.62 |
0.80 |
1.83 |
5.21 |
6.69 |
|
|
Underlying EPS (diluted)(1) |
1.69 |
1.62 |
1.53 |
6.27 |
6.03 |
|
|
Reported basic EPS ($) |
1.62 |
0.80 |
1.84 |
5.22 |
6.72 |
|
|
Return on equity (%) |
||||||
|
Reported ROE(1) |
15.1 % |
7.6 % |
18.0 % |
12.5 % |
17.1 % |
|
|
Underlying ROE(1) |
15.7 % |
15.5 % |
15.0 % |
15.1 % |
15.4 % |
|
|
Growth |
Q4'22 |
Q3'22 |
Q4'21 |
2022 |
2021 |
|
|
Sales |
||||||
|
Insurance sales(1) |
1,843 |
943 |
1,606 |
4,321 |
3,674 |
|
|
Wealth sales(1) |
45,754 |
43,096 |
56,708 |
204,113 |
228,408 |
|
|
Value of new business(1) |
468 |
256 |
494 |
1,253 |
1,346 |
|
|
Assets under management(1) |
||||||
|
General fund assets |
205,614 |
203,567 |
205,374 |
|||
|
Segregated funds |
125,292 |
118,564 |
139,996 |
|||
|
Mutual funds, managed funds and other AUM(1) |
994,953 |
952,624 |
1,099,358 |
|||
|
Total AUM(1) |
1,325,859 |
1,274,755 |
1,444,728 |
|||
|
Financial Strength |
Q4'22 |
Q3'22 |
Q4'21 |
|||
|
LICAT ratios(2) |
||||||
|
Sun Life Financial Inc. |
130 % |
129 % |
145 % |
|||
|
Sun Life Assurance(3) |
127 % |
123 % |
124 % |
|||
|
Financial leverage ratio(1)(4) |
25.1 % |
26.4 % |
25.5 % |
|||
|
Dividend |
||||||
|
Dividend payout ratio(1) |
43 % |
43 % |
43 % |
|||
|
Dividends per common share ($) |
0.720 |
0.690 |
0.660 |
|||
|
Capital |
||||||
|
Subordinated debt(4) |
6,676 |
7,075 |
6,425 |
|||
|
Innovative capital instruments(5) |
200 |
200 |
200 |
|||
|
Participating policyholders' equity |
1,837 |
1,764 |
1,700 |
|||
|
Non-controlling interest equity |
90 |
64 |
59 |
|||
|
Preferred shares and other equity instruments |
2,239 |
2,239 |
2,239 |
|||
|
Common shareholders' equity(6) |
25,211 |
24,718 |
24,075 |
|||
|
Total capital(4) |
36,253 |
36,060 |
34,698 |
|||
© Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS Parcha McFadden, left, a former resident of the Poppleton neighborhood, speaks at a news conference led by Marceline White, right, Executive Director of the nonprofit Economic Action Maryland, who has filed an administrative complaint with HUD alleging that the city’ s redevelopment policies that displaced Poppleton residents is an ongoing violation since...
BALTIMORE — Angela Banks remembers it was a brief phone call. Her landlord told her she needed to leave as soon as possible. He was selling the three-story rowhome in the Poppleton neighborhood — her home for decades — to the city of Baltimore to make way for a new development.
© Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS Banks, who was forced out with her family under eminent domain law in 2018, answers questions after a news conference outside the Allen A.M.E. Church on W. Lexington St..
It was wintertime in 2018. Banks and her five children moved into her green Ford Explorer. At night, they rolled up the windows, put on two pairs of pants and piled clothes on themselves to keep warm. During the day she begged for gas money.
“I lost everything. Everything I worked hard for and everything that I had, I lost,” Banks said. “Didn’t take nothing except trash bags and clothes.”
On Monday, Banks, along with the nonprofit advocacy group Economic Action Maryland, filed a complaint with the federal government to investigate the displacement of Black residents from Poppleton under the Fair Housing Act. They held a news conference on the steps of Allen A.M.E. Church, a block south of Banks’s old home, with current and former residents to announce the complaint against the city.
© Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS Sonia Eaddy, with her son Curtis Eaddy II, left, and husband Curtis Eaddy Jr., criticizes the way eminent domain has been practiced in Baltimore during a news conference announcing that an administrative complaint has been filed with HUD.
The complaint was filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and it alleges that when the city of Baltimore targeted Poppleton for redevelopment, it disproportionately displaced Black residents from their homes and perpetuated the city’s segregation.
“Baltimore has long been a tale of two cities. One a wealthy, predominantly white city with charming homes, tree-lined streets, and all kinds of amenities,” said Marceline White, executive director of Economic Action Maryland. “While the other predominantly lower income, majority Black neighborhoods have seen little investment or improvement in their communities for decades.”
© Meredith Cohn/Baltimore Sun/TNS Apartment buildings in the Centre\ West development in Poppleton.
City leaders slated Poppleton, a predominantly Black neighborhood, for redevelopment as early as 1975, according to the complaint. Almost 20 years ago, the city promised to raze about 500 homes there to clear space for a massive complex of apartments and other buildings to be developed by La Cite, a New York-based firm. In 2015, the city approved up to $58 million in public financing for the project.
© Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS Angela Banks, left, a former resident of the Poppleton neighborhood, has joined the complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by the nonprofit Economic Action Maryland, whose Executive Director, Marceline White, is at right.
Neither the city nor La Cite responded Monday to requests for comment. As part of their deal, the city acquired rowhomes, paying homeowners to leave and knocking down entire blocks.
But the massive redevelopment plans limped along through the Great Recession, then the pandemic, and the project known as Centre\West is just now entering its second phase, an $80 million senior housing apartment building with 176 units located at the corner of Schroeder and Saratoga streets, the Baltimore Business Journal reported last week.
The complaint says that even if the redevelopment project had finished in 2015 as originally planned, most of Poppleton’s original residents wouldn’t have been able to afford the rent of the newly constructed apartments.
The complaint also lists a set of demands, including:
—Compensation for former Poppleton residents as well as a right of return for any new housing;
—Significantly curbing the city’s ability to use eminent domain and creating a community oversight board to oversee any future use of eminent domain;
—A community land trust for the Poppleton neighborhood.
© Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/TNS Angela Banks, left, is comforted by a fellow Poppleton resident, Curtis Eaddy II, after giving emotional testimony during a news conference in which she explained the circumstances that led her to sign on to an administrative complaint filed with HUD by the nonprofit Economic Action Maryland. The complaint alleges that the city’ s redevelopment policies that...
A former homeowner and neighbor of Banks, Parcha McFadden, spoke at Monday’s news conference, as well as Sonia Eaddy, who successfully saved her historic rowhome from demolition after a fight stretching back nearly 20 years. Eaddy said eminent domain and the threat of seizing properties have destroyed her neighborhood.
“I would like to ask the city, ‘Where is our just compensation?’” Eaddy said. “It is a permanent erasure of a people of color, our history, our culture, our characteristics, our identity. There is nothing to show we ever existed … Black neighborhoods matter.”
As for Banks, she said she spent about six months living in her car before finding a home in Morrell Park in Southwest Baltimore, though her rent is significantly higher. The home on the 1100 block of West Saratoga Street where she lived for decades is still standing. The city owns the property. It has sat vacant since her family was forced to leave in 2018.
Last year, Baltimore paid about $50,000 to compensate Banks for her family’s displacement, she said, but much of the money went toward paying back debts accrued when she was living in her car and later struggling to find stability.
“The city, they broke me,” Banks said. “They broke me to the point where I tried to commit suicide … I guess God had a different plan for me.”
Banks said the stories told Monday morning were just a few snapshots of hundreds of families who once called Poppleton home.
“The struggle was real,” Banks said. “Just imagine how many other people that this happened to that never got to tell their story.”
©2023 The Baltimore Sun. Visit at baltimoresun.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Vicki Lavargna
On Senior Night, the Tewksbury girls basketball team rolled to a 57-19 Merrimack Valley Conference victory over Lawrence. Lavargna was a major reason Tewksbury rolled out to a 37-10 halftime lead. She finished with a game-high 20 points.
Timothy Rank
Rank captured the mile to help the Littleton boys repeat as Division 5 indoor track champions at the Reggie Lewis Center. He finished first in 4:24.49. He also took second in the two mile in 10:04.41. Rank also was part of the winning 4×800 relay team.
Bona Bradshaw
The other half of Littleton’s dynamic duo, Bradshaw was also instrumental in the Tigers repeating as Division 5 state champions. Bradshaw captured the two mile in a clocking of 10:02.30 and was a key component of Littleton’s winning 4×800 relay squad.
BOSSES at a nursery which the Scottish Health Secretary and his wife had accused of discrimination have said they are “extremely pleased” that legal action against them has been “terminated”.
Usha Fowdar, owner of the Little Scholars Day Nursery in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, insisted there “never was any discrimination”, as she revealed that Nadia El-Nakla had dropped her legal action.
3
3
3
But she hit out at Humza Yousaf and his wife - who is an SNP councillor in Dundee - saying they had “colluded in a half-baked sting operation” against the nursery and had then “mounted a vicious and cynical campaign against us in the national media”.
Ms Fowdar said: “What sort of people do that?”
Mr Yousaf spoke out against the nursery in August 2021, after the family were refused a place there for their young daughter.
He alleged that while they were told there were “no available spaces” for their daughter Amal, then aged two, a white friend was told days later that there were places available for her two-year-old son.
Nursery owner Ms Fowdar said they had been vindicated after Ms El-Nakla dropped “baseless” legal action against the nursery.
But she said it was “ upsetting to have spent almost 18 months and tens of thousands of pounds defending our small nursery against their false claims”.
Ms Fowdar said: “Whilst we were 100% prepared to see Ms El-Nakla in court, we are extremely pleased that this baseless legal action has been terminated.
“It bears repeating that, despite some extremely misleading headlines and spurious allegations, the Care Inspectorate identified administrative processes for improvement which had nothing to do with discrimination, because there never was any discrimination.
“Any attempt to twist this fact should be called out for what it is.”
The nursery owner continued: “Ms El-Nakla has, very sensibly, opted to drop her legal action in the face of our determination to defend ourselves and our hard-working employees.
“While I’m pleased our employees will be spared the stress of appearing as witnesses, in one sense I’m also disappointed, as the court case would have been extremely revealing and I’m utterly confident we would have prevailed.
“Despite this vindication, it has been deeply upsetting to have spent almost 18 months and tens of thousands of pounds defending our small nursery against their false claims.
“It beggars belief that, rather than pick up the phone to quickly resolve what was a simple misunderstanding, they colluded in a half-baked sting operation and then mounted a vicious and cynical campaign against us in the national media.”
In November 2021 the Care Inspectorate ordered the business to introduce measures so applications “are processed in a transparent and equitable manner” and to prove it is “being well-led and managed”.
A spokesman for the Care Inspectorate said at the time that “the service did not promote fairness, equality and respect when offering placements”.
A statement jointly agreed by Mr Yousaf and his wife, and by the nursery, made clear that the changes put forward by the Care Inspectorate had been "implemented in full".
Solicitor Aamer Anwar, who had acted for the couple, said that ending the action had been a "tough decision" but said that as parents they "believe it's the right one"
.Mr Anwar stated: "Nadia and Humza, first and foremost, are loving parents who like any others would do anything to protect their children.
"They only ever wanted the nursery to accept the findings of the Independent Care Inspectorate investigation and for the nursery to make changes.
"The nursery owner's may wish to say that they were prepared 100 per cent to go to court, but this was a joint agreement reached and on their acknowledgement of the findings of an independent investigation and implementing the necessary changes in full."
The lawyer continued: "The nursery by their own admission have acknowledged changes were required to make the admissions process more 'transparent and equitable' and that is the very least any young child is entitled to expect from an educational establishment in Scotland, no matter who their parent is or whatever their background.
"Nadia believes that as a mother she was justified in raising this legal action - she felt deeply hurt and hopes that as a result real change will take place."
The matter is now at end and there will be no further comment."
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