A HIGHER EDUCATION

Decrying government policy in the hope of repeal is common. Less so is
taking the initiative to work outside the system, and detractors of a
federal student aid guideline are doing just that.

The law in question is designed to keep federal aid dollars out of the
hands of college students who have criminal drug records. On the federal
student aid application, fund-seekers are asked if they've ever been
convicted of possessing or selling illegal drugs.

For those answering "yes," one possession conviction renders students
unable to receive aid for a year after conviction. For a second possession
or first drug-sale conviction, the funding ineligibility is two years.

Last week, a network of groups pushing for drug law reform launched a
scholarship program for students turned down because of their criminal drug
records. The John W. Perry Fund scholarships are named for a New York cop
who died in the World Trade Center attacks last fall. Perry was a staunch
critic of the war on drugs.

Higher education is a window of opportunity, one the existing drug law
unfairly shuts. The current provisions need to be changed or thrown out
altogether. Until that happens, hats off to the people who didn't want to wait.