DRUG CONVICTIONS WOULDN'T PREVENT SOME COLLEGE AID

College students with past drug convictions could receive financial
aid, under a change proposed in Congress.

But students who have a drug conviction while in college would no
longer be eligible, according to a statement from Students for a
Sensible Drug Policy.

The bill, the College Access and Opportunity Act of 2005, next goes
to the full House for a vote before it can move to the U.S. Senate.
In January, the congressionally-created Advisory Committee on Student
Financial Assistance recommended that drug convictions were not
relevant to aid eligibility.

"After seven years of political rhetoric and empty promises, Congress
is finally acting to help some students affected by this terrible
policy," said Scarlett Swerdlow, executive director of Students for
Sensible Drug Policy. "But this partial reform is like sapping a
Band-Aid on a gaping wound. Tens of thousands of students will
continue to be yanked out of school every year," she said.