AID PROVISION UP FOR REVIEW

National study finds financial benefit cut does not deter drug
use

Junior Meghan Hopper doesn't do drugs, but she knows someone who used
to until he was caught with marijuana in a UW-Milwaukee residence hall.

Her friend no longer attends Milwaukee, partially because he lost his
financial aid even after he stopped doing drugs.

But unlike Hopper's friend, a study conducted by the U.S. Government
Accountability Office displayed the addition of a provision to the
Higher Education Act that denies financial aid to students convicted
of using drugs hasn't deterred them from doing so.

That provision, added in 1998, denied 175,000 students federal aid,
and is up for reconsideration this year, according to a Sept. 29
Students for Sensible Drug Policy press release.

Hopper said she doesn't agree with taking away her friend's aid or
anyone else's.

"It's a crime, obviously," she said of drug use, "but I think it's a
disease too. It should be treated, not punished."

Tom Angell, a member of SSD, agreed.

"Education shouldn't be held hostage for the sake of drug war
policies," he said.

"(The policy) is a deterrent to people becoming productive, tax-paying
citizens. Everyone who loses their financial aid because of this law
has already been punished through the criminal justice system."

Vice Chancellor Andy Soll agreed.

"If someone is convicted of a crime, they'd do a jail term," he said.
"Society has a way for people to pay their debt and then move on with
their life. I personally believe they should not be denied the
opportunity to pursue an education and training that is going to put
them on the right path."

Hopper, an English education major, said education is important and if
college is the right place for someone, he or she will realize doing
drugs isn't worth it.

"(If they) are motivated and are able to move on with their life, they
realize drugs are bad for them," she said.

Soll said he wondered why it's necessary to just deny college students
access to federal funding, because an adult convicted of a crime isn't
denied access to Social Security or Medicaid, for example.

"Why are we denying college students (federal funding)?," Soll
asked.

Angell said, especially right now, having access to financial aid is
essential.

"We're living in a time when tuition and the cost of college is
skyrocketing," he said. "How do we expect people to make better lives
for themselves if they can't get money to go to college?"