STUDENTS FOR SENSIBLE DRUG POLICY HELPS THOSE WITH DRUG CONVICTIONS
ATTEND COLLEGE

Thousands of potential college students will not be heading off to
universities this year because of a little known federal law.

A law that can strip them of their financial aid if they are
convicted of a drug offense.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy is an organization that was started
in 1998 to work on overturning the penalties that young people with
drug convictions face in college.

"This organization is concerned with the war on drugs. It causes more
harm than it does to prevent it with young people," said Tom Angell,
the Campaign Director for SSDP.

Angell refers to the fact that students who are convicted of a drug
offense while they are enrolled in a university, will have their
financial aid revoked and may no longer be able to afford college.

"The law doesn't protect young people. It puts us at a greater risk
by taking away our access to education," Angell said.

One of the main things that SSDP students and advocates pride
themselves on is their ability to lobby for changes. In February,
they got Congress to scale the law back so now students can't be
penalized for offenses that happened before they started college.

On the FAFSA, students have to list if they have had any drug
offenses and now students can be rewarded financial aid even if they
cited one, Angell said.

"The War on Drugs is supposedly there to protect us, but it's not. We
know better than anyone else that it's up to students and young
people to fight back. This (law) directly targets students," Angell said.

In addition to lobbying for changes, SSDP also works to foster drug
policies on campuses and has been working to get colleges to stop
automatic dorm expulsion. They have also been working to prevent
schools from punishing students more harshly for marijuana than for
underage drinking, according to the SSDP press release.

"Any conviction listing the possession or sale of controlled
substances, from one marijuana cigarette to Heroin trafficking, can
cause students to lose their Financial Aid," Angell said.

This fall, SSDP is hosting an international conference and
congressional lobby day on November 17-19 in Washington, D.C.

Students are encouraged to attend and speak out about the laws, even
if they do not belong to their school's chapter, Angell said.

"We will have hundreds of student activists there. We bring our
problems directly to the law maker's doorsteps. SSDP actually works
on changing policy, we don't just complain about it," Angell said.

These policies directly target students and it is our responsibility
to fight, because no one else will, Angell said. "This is the first
I've heard of this (group), but it seems like a worthy endeavor for
any campus to get involved in," said Jason Gross, student body
president of West Virginia University.

SSDP seems to give students a second chance and helps them get on
their feet, Gross said.

"Lots of people make bad choices and make mistakes and they can lose
their financial aid for it. College is so expensive now and education
is important, so this would be beneficial on this campus," Gross said.

For more information on how to start a local chapter of the SSDP or
to find out about the lobby in Washington, go to www.schoolsnotprisons.com