STUDENTS PROTEST NO-AID RULES IN DRUG CASES

Iowa City, Ia. - Organizers of a group say its purpose
is to protest rules that withhold financial aid from students convicted of
drug violations - not, as some critics have suggested, to legalize marijuana.

U of I senior George Pappas and freshman Kyle FitzGerald started the
Students for Sensible Drug Policy chapter this fall. Group members are
against the 1998 Higher Education Act amendments that keep monetary aid
from students with drug convictions. The group is contacting city and
university officials to talk about the medicinal purpose of the drug and
discuss the decriminalization of marijuana.

"Everybody knows someone who has smoked pot," Pappas said. "It's an issue
seen as taboo."

Students for Sensible Drug Policy is a national club based in Washington,
D.C. It includes 200 college and high school chapters across the country,
according to the group's Web site.

The group's first meeting in November drew 40 people, standing-room only.
Pappas and FitzGerald turned away eight students from the last meeting
Wednesday because they wanted to discuss marijuana legalization.

This isn't the first time a group has opposed drug laws, said Iowa City
police Sgt. Mike Brotherton.

"So there's 25 people who want marijuana legalized, people who also
probably smoke it," he said. "We've been over this road many times."

In the past, U of I students have locally mobilized the national
pro-marijuana group NORML, the National Organization to Reform Marijuana
Laws, U of I Vice President for Student Services Phillip Jones said.

While they also have received e-mail criticizing their efforts, the two
students focus on their crusade for personal reasons.

Pappas was caught smoking weed in his back yard in high school and was
convicted of marijuana possession. He works 20 hours a week to help pay for
tuition because he can't get financial aid. "I"m here pursuing a future,"
Pappas said. "Once I got arrested I thought, "Hey, I"m not a bad person.
What did I do wrong? I researched and picked up facts."

FitzGerald is driven to change the rules, and partly because he also wants
to reform medicinal marijuana laws. A relative of his has AIDS and smokes
marijuana to alleviate the pain.

Pappas and FitzGerald admit they fumbled things at first. An e-mail that
was sent out to the entire university community in November asked for
students who had smoked pot or knew anyone who did to attend the first
meeting. "It was a bad mass e-mail," FitzGerald said. "We weren't
spell-checking. We misspelled marijuana."

They've organized since. The club gained momentum when U of I Student
Government Vice President Matt Blizek joined, FitzGerald and Pappas said.
He's a known student activist on campus.

"We don't want to attract the we-come-stoned-and-laugh club," FitzGerald
said. "This is serious."