The day before voting on the FundQi referendum begins, two representatives of the yes and no vote committees debated the effectiveness and transparency of the service.
The referendum, which endured a confusing three-month amendment process, will determine whether FundQi—a service that connects students to scholarships and other funding—remains as a $9.99 per-semester opt-out fee.
Emily Sowa, a Carleton University Students’ Association councillor for the faculty of public affairs, represented the yes committee, which wants FundQi removed as an ancillary fee. Scott Braddon, COO of FundQi, advocated for keeping the ancillary fee on behalf of the no committee.
READ: Everything you need to know about the FundQi referendum
“This service has given nothing but strife and disrespect to many students on our campus, and it needs to stop,” Sowa said.
Sowa argued that FundQi, which was added as a CUSA ancillary fee after a referendum passed in January 2020, has not been transparent enough about where fees are going and whether the service has been effective.
Braddon said FundQi has not disclosed its finances or how many students have used the service because under the service agreement with CUSA, it is not required to do so until June 1, 2021.
“I don’t see why our resource distribution needs to be scrutinized on a regular basis,” Braddon said, adding that FundQi shared how it is compensating its employees in a post on its website.
Braddon said FundQi would be happy to revise the service agreement so it can disclose its financial information and information on the service’s effectiveness more often.
According to Braddon, FundQi helps put money in the pockets of financially vulnerable students who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford attending university.
“The yes committee wants to take that support away from those who need it most,” Braddon said. “Voting no means taking care of our fellow Ravens.”
Sowa argued students can access the same services FundQi offers for free elsewhere online. According to Braddon, FundQi also offers essay and application editing services that can’t be found for the same price.
“We [don’t] only provide a security blanket for when students fall into a point in their life when they need extra support,” Braddon said. “This is also a one-on-one application support.”
“To have that for everyone at Carleton, for less than $10 a semester—and you don’t even have to pay if you don’t want to, because you can opt out—is just so much value,” he added.
CUSA council originally voted to hold a second FundQi referendum at its December council meeting. The original referendum, if passed by students, would have made FundQi a $9.99 per-semester opt-in fee.
Currently, students automatically pay the $9.99 fee and can choose to receive a refund by filling out a form on the FundQi website. By making FundQi an opt-in service, students would not automatically pay for it but could choose to do so.
FundQi representatives expressed concern at the December meeting and in a February meeting that FundQi would not be able to offer the same quality of service if only some students were paying the fee, instead of all students.
While a motion to change the referendum question to make FundQi an opt-in fee at $105 per semester failed, council eventually amended the referendum to eliminate FundQi entirely, if passed.
Sowa said the opt-out process for students who did not want to pay for FundQi is not fair. Many students missed the deadline and were uncomfortable with providing their personal information to a company they’re not using, according to Sowa.
Additionally, Sowa said the form to receive a refund is not accessible enough to students. Braddon argued that if students Google “opt-out FundQi,” the form is the first result.
Braddon also said the opt-out process was originally supposed to be managed by CUSA, and that FundQi did a good job of organizing the process at the last minute.
However, the service agreement between CUSA and FundQi, signed April 24, 2020—months before the first opt-out period in the fall semester—states FundQi “agrees to bear the responsibility to organize and maintain the opt-out process on their own website.”
In her closing argument, Sowa said FundQi hasn’t respected students.
“Students are tired of being treated like a start-up fund,” Sowa said. “We would like to see results … We do not know where our money is going, and during times of financial instability, this is something we deserve to have.”
“We need to give this service a shot,” Braddon said. “I don’t think there’s any other service out there that’s able to offer that kind of value at that small price.”
Students can vote in the referendum via their Carleton emails on March 8 and 9.
