Did you ever wonder where the money from returnables at USM go? Well if you live on campus, then it could be yours.
Last spring, Gary Stephenson, the assistant director of residential life, worked with residential life to bring a program from the University of Fairfield, where he used to work, to respond to students’ requests to collect redeemable bottles and cans on the Gorham campus.
Any residential student can propose an event or trip so long as there are clear educational outcomes. This is not to say that trips cannot be entertaining as well. For example, Stephenson said students who are interested in sports management can go to a Portland Red Claws game if it includes meeting with the team’s management.
“The bottle and can redemption money has always been used to support educational programming, but I wanted there to be an opportunity for students to access money generated from USM’s bottle redemption through a process that was easily navigable for students,” said Stephenson.
He calls this program the FACE fund, an acronym for Financial Assistance for Creative Events. This fund, according to Stephenson, has approximately seven thousand dollars in it.
“The fund is only for residential students because all the redeemed bottles come from the Brooks Student Center and the residence halls,” said Stephenson. He also said that applicants must explicitly state and account for what the money will be used for and cannot be used for alcohol.
Only one application was received last spring and funding was granted for students going to New Orleans to help rebuild. This process was handled by Stephenson and Residential Life.
“I talked with the student about the her proposal. She then completed the FACE form, it was reviewed for completeness and then the student presented her proposal. The review team included senior residential life administrative personnel,” said Stephenson.
“We decided to approve this application because there was a social justice component that gave students the ability to learn about a very different culture.”
This fall the actual decision on who gets funded now rests in the hands of the residence hall association. RHA President Mike Emery said he was uncomfortable making comments on any policies regarding approval via RHA because they “are still in the development stage, but they are being worked on.”
“I handle the administration of the [bottle] collecting process and the applications for funding, but the residence hall association makes the decisions on what applications receive funding,” said Stephenson, who added there currently are no pending applications, but he expects to receive a couple shortly.
But what happens to the money generated from redeemed bottles on the Portland campus?
“Bottles are taken to the redemption center, a check is cut and the money is used to offset waste and recycling costs,” said Brett Hallett, the recycling coordinator for environmental services.
“I have never heard of the FACE fund, but occasionally some students do inquire about collecting bottles on campus,” said Hallett. Though unsure of the exact number, he said that the once a week redemption of bottles on the Portland campus generated several thousand dollars a year, but there are no plans to change how the money is being spent.
“I think the FACE fund is a good idea, but it could go to other causes than creative events, like HIV/AIDs programs and other similar philanthropic causes,” said Sara Donahue, a freshman resident student majoring in human biology.
“I think that it would be a good idea to bring something like the FACE Fund to Portland as well,” said Donahue.
Lindsey Rizzitelli, a junior social work major and a commuter student, said she thinks a similar program in Portland could help build community on campus.
“I like the idea of the FACE fund, but it would definitely be nice if it happened on the Portland campus as well,” she said. “I think, as a commuter, it’s harder to create a bond with my fellow students and I think that redemption money could be used for community building events,” she said.
Student Body President Ashley Willems-Phaneuf only recently heard about the fund on Sept.13. “I knew nothing about the FACE fund before I went to the [RHA] meeting. The fund seemed like a secret stash of money that student don’t know about and I’m concerned about the lack of clear policy regarding notification, transparency, and distribution of funds,” she said.
“The student government should have a role of being cognizant of things like the FACE fund and find out about such things for the student body,” she said.
Willems-Phaneuf said she doesn’t see a reason why such a fund couldn’t exist for commuter students. “I would like to see students take a stand and pursue funding interests like the FACE fund.”