DENIED FOR DRUGS

Thousands of students denied financial aid for drug convictions,
according to report

Over 41,000 potential students were denied federal financial aid
during the 2003-04 academic year because they either reported a drug
conviction or refused to answer a question about drug convictions on
their federal financial aid application, according to a Government
Accounting Office report.

The report, published in September, studied the impact of a provision
added to the federal Higher Education Act in 1998, which added a
question Free Application for Federal Student Aid asking applicants
if they have ever been convicted of a drug crime. Applicants who
answer yes or refuse to answer the question can be denied all federal
financial aid, including Pell Grants and federal loans.

The provision was added to the Higher Education Act in an attempt to
reduce drug crime, but critics have raised concerns that the
provision could deter people from pursuing a college degree.

The Government Accounting Office (GAO) report was inconclusive about
whether the policy actually deters drug crimes, and also could not
determine if the policy actually deters people from pursuing higher
education. However, the report did indicate that since the rule was
passed, thousands of federal aid applicants have been denied millions
of dollars in potential aid.

Though applicants being denied aid represent a small percentage of
the total of applicants applying for federal aid -- just 0.3 percent
of the 13,009,596 applicants in 2003-04 -- the GAO estimates that $45
million in Pell Grants was denied to about 18,000 students in 2003-04
and over $100 million in loans was denied to about 29,000 students as
a result of the drug crime provision.

Despite the inconclusive data, concern that the policy could steer
students away from higher education has caught the attention of many
student activist groups.

"Students are tired of seeing their education jeopardized to putative
drug policies," said Tom Angell, campaign director for Students for
Sensible Drug Policy, a national advocacy group that campaigns for
drug law reform.

The group cites the fact that the financial aid policy could not be
shown to deter drug use as an argument that the policy should be removed.

"The law on drugs should not be a war on education," Angell said.

Over 115 college campuses have opened chapters of Students for
Sensible Drug Policy, working on lobbying Congress, marching Capitol
Hill, and working on their own campuses to change their school policies.

According to the GAO report, postsecondary education is found to have
a positive impact on lifetime earnings. The average lifetime earnings
for a high school graduate is $1.2 million, while those who have
bachelor degrees are reported to earn $2.1 million. If the drug
provision indeed deters students from completing postsecondary
education, drug offenders may not be able to receive the heftier
paychecks of those who hold a bachelor's degree.

"Those that get caught with drugs and have an arrest record and even
a conviction record in many cases their job opportunities in the
future are already limited," said Brian Renauer, assistant professor
of criminal justice at Portland State University. "To take that
opportunity [of attending college] away could do more harm than good."

"I understand where the feds are coming from. Ultimately I think
they're concerned with students not paying back loans." Renauer
added. "[But] using drug conviction as an indication of that isn't very good,"

There are not many options for aid applicants who are denied aid due
to the drug provision. Drug offenders are still eligible for some
private scholarships and grants, albeit not many. The John W. Perry
Scholarship fund awards grants to people who have lost heir financial
aid to the drug provision.

At PSU, few students have come to the financial aid office seeking
assistance with denial of financial due to a drug conviction,
according to the Office of Financial Aid.

"Personally, I've only been involved with maybe five or six
situations [of drug offenders desiring financial assistance] in the
last few years," said Ken McGhee, director of financial aid at
Portland State University.