STOPPING DRUGS - AND STUDENTS

"Promoting educational excellence for all Americans."

This is the motto of the U.S. Department of Education, displayed
prominently under the department's masthead on its homepage. Yet for
the past eight years it's been clear that the federal government
only promotes educational excellence for some Americans.

In 1998, Congress added a new provision to the Higher Education Act.
The so-called Drug Provision prevents students with past drug
convictions from receiving federal financial aid, without which it's
virtually impossible for millions of students nationwide to attend college.

It would be nice if the war on drugs was a black and white affair --
if we could say that anyone who's ever done drugs is bad, and
everyone else is good -- but it's much more complex than that. Many
children in low-income neighborhoods have no choice about growing up
in drug-riddled environments, where smoking pot or shooting heroin
is just a way of life.

College is a way out of this culture of drugs, an announcement
to the world that one seeks more out of life than what's offered in
the slums. Why, then, do we target those so obviously seeking to
turn their lives around, those who need college more than anybody?
We should be encouraging these students to attend college, not
erecting obstacles in their way.

People who have done their time for drugs have, simply, done their
time, and should be able to move on. The HEA's Drug Provision
prevents many from doing this by establishing a sort of double
jeopardy for those with a drug record.

Of course, there will always be exceptions. A handful of students
will continue their drug habits once they get to college, and these
students may end up wasting their financial aid money by dropping
out of school. But if one drug offender seems especially likely to
be a problem in college, he or she should be evaluated on
an individual basis; the vast majority of would-be college students
intending to turn their lives around don't deserve to be
automatically punished for a wrong decision they may have made five
or ten years ago.

Anyone who has applied to college and applied for financial aid
through the FAFSA knows that these are not easy processes. If people
show a willingness to put the time and effort into pursuing higher
education, they should be commended, not condemned. According to
Students for Sensible Drug Policy, which opposes the HEA's Drug
Provision, more than 175,000 people have had their aid stripped since
2000. Congress should repeal the provision before any more students
are denied the chance to improve their prospects for a better life.