Ex-dean at Cal State San Marcos subject of criminal inquiry
SAN DIEGO — Michael Schroder, the former dean of extended studies at Cal State San Marcos who racked up tens of thousands of dollars in improper travel billings, is now under criminal investigation by the San Diego County district attorney’s office, university officials said.
Schroder, who left the campus after the San Diego Union-Tribune disclosed his lavish spending practices in 2019, also is being asked to make restitution for expenses that did not meet university standards, a Cal State San Marcos spokeswoman confirmed.
“Unfortunately I’m not able to provide details on the amount of requested restitution, the time period for which it is sought, or any further information provided to the District Attorney’s Office related to Mr. Schroder due to the criminal investigation that is ongoing,” Margaret Chantung, the school’s chief communications officer, said by email.
“We are fully cooperating with the District Attorney and look forward to the successful completion of the investigation,” she said.
A spokesman for Dist. Atty. Summer Stephan said the office does not comment on potential cases.
Schroder could not be reached for comment and previously has declined interview requests. The Carlsbad resident opened a consulting practice in February 2020 that specializes in global strategy, according to his profile on the LinkedIn social networking service.
The former dean was one of several Cal State San Marcos administrators who, combined, spent more than $300,000 traveling on university business from 2017 to 2019, the Union-Tribune reported in October 2019.
Documents obtained by the newspaper showed that Schroder, former President Karen Haynes and other university officials stayed at resorts that cost $600 and $700 per night, routinely hired private drivers and billed the school for fine dining and alcohol.
Schroder charged the university for first-class airfare and stays at the RitzCarlton, among other luxury hotels.
He also booked stays at resorts that were miles away from destinations he cited as the purpose for his university travel, the UnionTribune reported. He was particularly fond of the $130 chilled seafood platter at Vigilucci’s in Encinitas, records show.
Soon after taking over for Haynes in July 2019, Cal State San Marcos President Ellen Neufeldt ordered an internal investigation into university travel spending, particularly Schroder’s.
“We have already identified areas for improvement, including: limits on travel expenditures related to the cost of hotels and air travel, the frequency of travel, cost of meals and reimbursement of alcohol, and improving documentation requirements,” Neufeldt said in 2019.
In the meantime, the California State University chancellor’s office opened a formal audit of travel spending at San Marcos, although the review was limited only to those expenses incurred by Schroder between July 2017 and June 2019.
The findings, released in February 2020, showed the dean racked up more than $41,000 in unallowable expenses. He also filed dozens of fraudulent claims, submitted duplicate expense reports and collected improper reimbursements, the review showed.
On one day, for example, Schroder attended an NFL game and a Guns N’ Roses concert, billing both events to the university as college business, the audit said.
“We investigated allegations that the dean of extended learning … inappropriately used his expense account for personal meals and events, claimed business expenses for meals with individuals with whom he never met and spent excessively on international travel,” the report stated. “We substantiated all of the allegations.”
All of the questionable and fraudulent expenses were approved by other administrators, the UnionTribune analysis of travel records showed.