Pubdate: Tue, 18 Apr 2006
Source: Oklahoman, The (OK)
Copyright: 2006 The Oklahoma Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.oklahoman.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/318
Author: Susan Simpson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hea.htm (Higher Education Act)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?219 (Students for Sensible Drug Policy)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

US OK: STATE RANKS HIGH IN FINANCIAL AID LOST TO DRUG CONVICTIONS, STUDY SHOWS

Hundreds of Oklahomans have been denied federal financial aid for 
college because they have drug convictions.

A report by Students for Sensible Drug Policy states that 2,508 
Oklahomans -- the 11th highest percentage in the nation -- could not 
receive aid the past five years because of a provision of the Higher 
Education Act.

About 190,000 would-be students have been affected nationwide, or 
about one in every 400, said the group, which obtained the 
information through the settlement of a Freedom of Information Act 
lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education.

The federal government added a drug conviction question to the Free 
Application for Federal Student Aid form in the 2001-02 school year. 
Students can be deemed ineligible for a year or more after an offense.

That will change in July, when grants and loans will be cut off only 
if a drug conviction comes while a student is in college and already 
receiving aid.

Still, critics argue that stripping students of any financial aid 
because of drug convictions unconstitutionally punishes them twice 
for the same offense.

"We'd like to see the provision completely erased from the law 
books," said Tom Angell, campaign director for Students for Sensible 
Drug Policy. "Before the provision was passed, judges already had the 
ability to deny aid to people with drug offenses on a case-by-case 
basis. We'd like to repeal the one-size-fits-all, blanket policy and 
return discretion to judges to decide."

While a student can regain eligibility by completing a rehabilitation 
program that includes random drug tests, that isn't an option for 
most, Angell said.

"These are private treatment programs, and the law doesn't make any 
money available to help people pay for the programs, which are often 
more expensive than tuition itself," Angell said.

The law needs flexibility, said Ben Brown, deputy commissioner of the 
Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

"If someone is in the throes of an addiction, it makes no sense to 
allow them to get a loan," Brown said. "But if they are getting their 
life back together ... then it makes no sense to deprive them of any 
opportunity to go back to school. It just makes a bad situation worse."

U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Muskogee, said the law is intended to deter 
students from abusing drugs, not punish those who have corrected 
their behavior.

"This law, as intended, gives students who may face peer pressure or 
temptations to experiment with drugs a powerful incentive to avoid 
drug abuse," he said.

Drug convictions also can prevent students from receiving state aid. 
The Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Program, the state scholarship 
fund for families earning less than $50,000, has a requirement that 
students stay out of trouble and not abuse substances. The Oklahoma 
Tuition Aid Grant program mandates that students also be eligible for 
federal financial aid.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman