“As a member of the athletic community and a leader in trying to get the referendum passed, we were trying to keep the vote on the [down low],” the letter reads. “This is straight from the athletic department, we want people to vote, but we only want them to vote yes.”
According to former Sixth College Senator John Condello, the letter was released by an unnamed vice president to a group against the move to Division I. It began circulating on Facebook on Wednesday night.
“The VP who released it was approached by Alyssa Wing and was told to keep all of this on the down low,” Condello said. “That didn’t really happen.”
Wing denied any connection to the note and said that A.S. Council has a policy of neutrality.
“As far as we know, the note that appeared on Facebook was entirely unaffiliated with A.S., the pro campaign, the athletics department, or any other organized group involved with the referendum,” Wing said in an email. “Contrary to some of the comments made, the Facebook message was not an A.S. email that circulated. To my knowledge, it was a message that was sent to an A.S. councilmember.”
Wing said A.S. Council will partake in an “unprecedented neutral voter awareness operation” when voting opens during Week 8.  
The referendum, if passed by students in the upcoming special election, would add a $165 fee per student per quarter to fund the move to Division I sports. Voting begins Week 8 and will continue into Week 9.