USE AN EDUCATED DRUG POLICY

As part of the war on drugs, the Education Department has added a new
question to its federal student aid application. Question 28: " If you
have never been convicted of any drug offense, enter '1' in the box
and go to question 29." It turns out, though, that a fifth of the
applicants did not feel like answering that one. The department has
decided not to push the matter beyond a stern warning but vows it will
not be so forgiving next year. We just hope they do not turn this into
a witch hunt.

Under new federal law, students cannot receive federal financial
assistance after July 1 if they have received a first drug-possession
conviction in the last year or a first selling conviction in the last
two years. This policy should certainly provide motivation for
students to stay away from drugs --the threat of losing one's
financial aid can be very strong. But this does not explain why so
many students did not answer this year. Certainly 100,000 students did
not all have something to hide.

During a survey of some of the non-respondents, the department heard
all sorts of excuses. Some claimed to have forgotten to answer, others
not to have understood the question. Sure, it might just be the
short-term memory associated with marijuana acting up. but if students
really are having trouble with such a straightforward question, we
must question whether they belong in collage, let alone receiving
federal assistance to be there. Not answering because of a lame excuse
is almost worse than admitting to having done drugs.

Yet the Education Department should not casually disqualify anyone
who admits to a conviction. Imagine a generally successful student,
pulling good grades and preparing himself to be a member of an
ever-more educated workforce. One night he gets busted at a party for
smoking a joint. Does he really deserve what amounts to an expulsion
by the government ? Someone with a serious felony conviction, yes.
One minor infraction, no.

Next year, get tough on students. Do not accept incomplete forms. Keep
an open mind, though, and remember what it was like in collage.
Overlooking a minor infraction will not be the end of higher education.