Drugs and College Aid

A single conviction for a drug offense, even a minor one long ago,
can disqualify a person for federal college aid.

It doesn't make a lot of sense. People guilty of far more serious
offenses, including murder, are still eligible. And to the dismay of
even its get-tough sponsors, the prohibition has ended up depriving
thousands of promising people the money they desperately need for college.

The provision is embedded in the Higher Education Act of 1998, and it
is being applied even to people whose drug offenses occurred when they
were silly adolescents.

As a result, the very people who most need help in getting an
education - and who have proven by their actions that they deserve it
- - are being shut out.

The illogic and injustice of this approach has become so clear that
there's now an effort, supported by President Bush, to rewrite the law
to limit it only to students convicted of drug abuse while in college.

That was the idea to begin with, some of the original, and chagrined,
backers say: to discourage drug use by college students.

Their proposed fix, however, falls short. For one thing, it still
punishes drug offenses more harshly than other crimes. For another, it
imposes dire consequences on some students for behavior that many
others engage in with impunity. And, finally, as political leaders
such as Gov. Ernie Fletcher are recognizing, the answer to
debilitating drug use is treatment, not punishment.

Unfortunately, such sense hasn't penetrated Congress. A bill to repeal
the provision (H.R. 685, introduced by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and
39 co-sponsors) hasn't been able to overcome anti-drug grandstanding
in the Education and Workforce Committee.

Outright repeal, however, should be the goal. The federal government
should be fostering, not eliminating, the ability of schools, families
and health providers to work together to restore drug-abusing students
to fully productive lives.