GROUP ATTEMPTS OVERTURN OF FINANCIAL AID DRUG ACT

Say no to drugs, or the government may take your financial aid away because
of a law the Drug Reform Coordination Network is now working to overturn.

A provision in the Higher Education Act, signed into law Oct. 7, will
terminate eligibility for federal financial aid for at least one year if a
student is convicted of possession or sale of a controlled substance.

In response, the DRCNet has begun a campaign spreading awareness of the law
among college students in hopes of overturning it.

Still, awareness of this provision at the University is low.

"A lot of people don't know the law is out there and it's going to be in
effect soon," DRCNet University Coordinator Kris Lotlikar said.

DRCNet--a group of 6,000 activists that pushes for "drug policy reform,"
has criticized the provision because of a racial and economic bias,
Associate Director Adam J. Smith said.

"The reality is that what it's going to do is discriminate" against blacks
and lower income students, Smith said.

However, the provision will not affect student financial aid until the next
academic year, he said.

Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., introduced the provision last spring.

Smith said Souder was trying to send a message to his white constituency,
providing a "get tough non-solution."

"It only affects you if you're poor or earn middle income," he said.

Angela Flood, Souder's deputy chief of staff, said that the provision
intends no racial bias.

The nation's taxpayers should not be supporting students who are being
convicted on drug charges, Flood said.

"There has to be some accountability," she said.

But Smith contends the law hurts people who are trying to rebuild their
life and go to college after a previous drug conviction.

He cited statistics stating that blacks comprise 12 percent of the nation's
population, 13 percent of the nation's drug users and 55 percent of all
drug convictions.

"No other class of offense impacts financial aid," Smith said.

He also noted convicted stalkers and rapists are still eligible for aid.

Flood said the law is not retroactive, and prior convictions do not affect
aid.

"This applies only if you are convicted while receiving aid," she said.

Working primarily over the Internet, DRCNet is coordinating student efforts
to overturn the provision.

Souder was "counting on the fact that college students wouldn't do
anything. We've seen a pretty good response," Smith said.

DRCNet support has grown to include students at close to 100 colleges,
Smith said.

DRCNet's push to overturn the law will be an uphill battle on the financial
front as well.

"We're running out of money," Lotlikar said.

But Lotlikar remains optimistic about the future of the campaign.

"We have a pretty good membership and we've gotten a lot of donations.
We'll figure out a way around it," he said.

Despite opposition to the provision, Flood does not think it will be
overturned in the near future.

"I think they have a very tough case," she said.

African-American Affairs Dean M. Rick Turner and William W. Harmon , Vice
President of Student Affairs declined to comment due to lack of familiarity
with the law.

Black Student Alliance Chairman Damon Aulston, and Ishmail Conway,
African-American affairs assistant dean, declined to comment due to
unfamiliarity with the law.

University Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Amanda Morrow, Dean of Students
Robert T. Canaveri, and Asst. Dean of Students Aaron Laushway also declined
to comment due to unfamiliarity with the law.

Financial Aid Director Yvonne Hubbard could not be reached for comment.