EDUCATION DEPT. CORRECTS ERROR ON WEB SITE ABOUT AID POLICY FOR
STUDENTS WITH DRUG CONVICTIONS

The U.S. Department of Education has removed from its Web site
incorrect information about the eligibility for federal aid of
students with drug convictions, despite saying last week that it
could not fix the error until late July.

The corrected page, on the part of the department's Web site with
information on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or
Fafsa, now instructs students to complete a "drug-conviction
worksheet" to learn if drug convictions affect their eligibility.
Previously, the page incorrectly stated that students "must not have
any drug convictions" to receive aid (The Chronicle, July 1).

Education Department officials said last week that the error would
not be fixed until July 24, the day the contractor that maintains the
Fafsa Web site was next scheduled to upload changes.

On Tuesday, however, Marianna O'Brien, of the Federal Student Aid
communications department, said that the change had been uploaded
last Friday. She said the contractor could fix the mistake ahead of
schedule because updates to content are less complex than other types
of changes to the site.