Pubdate: Sat, 17 Mar 2007
Source: Fort Collins Coloradoan (CO)
Copyright: 2007 The Fort Collins Coloradoan
Contact: http://www.coloradoan.com/customerservice/contactus.html
Website: http://www.coloradoan.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1580
Author: Brooke Malcolm, Amanda Broz
Note: Brooke Malcolm and Amanda Broz are co-founders of  Students for
Sensible Drug Policy at Colorado State  University.

GOOD STUDENTS MUSTN'T FACE DOUBLE JEOPARDY

The Higher Education Act of 1965 was intended to  broaden access to 
college education by providing  financial support to eligible 
students and  institutions. What resulted was our modern 
federal  financial aid system, which includes all types 
of  need-based resources such as Pell grants, low-interest  loans and 
federal work-study. For lower- and middle-class students, these forms 
of assistance put a  post-secondary education within their reach.

However, when the HEA was reauthorized in 1998, a  provision that 
directly contradicts the original spirit  of the law was adopted. Now 
dubbed the Aid Elimination  Penalty, the amendment effectively strips 
federal  financial aid from students convicted of any drug crime  - 
even simple possession. Admission of a conviction or  failure to 
answer on the FAFSA automatically renders  the student ineligible for 
aid, regardless of financial  need. To date, approximately $200 
million has been  withheld from nearly 200,000 students nationwide, 
which  does not include the unknown number of students who did  not 
apply for fear of rejection.

Compounding this issue is the administration of state  need-based 
aid, particularly in states such as  Colorado. The Colorado 
Commission on Higher Education  takes advantage of the federal aid 
processing system to  determine students' eligibility for state 
funding. This translates to automatic ineligibility for students 
with  drug convictions, despite the fact that Colorado has  adopted 
no statute to that effect. Nearly 2,500  applicants in Colorado have 
been deprived of all  need-based aid as a result of this 
administrative  loophole.

If the argument to preserve financial aid for drug  offenders seems 
absurd, first, consider a few things.  Murderers, rapists, child 
molesters, spouse abusers and  arsonists are all eligible for federal 
and state money  for their education if they choose to apply. An 
underage college student who drives drunk and kills  another driver 
does not lose need-based awards.  Conversely, a student meeting 
federal enrollment and  GPA requirements who chooses to use an 
illicit drug -  something that the current president and vice 
president  have both admitted to doing in the past - will 
lose  educational funding if prosecuted.

Ultimately, most people who do not complete a college  education are 
less productive members of society. A  college graduate earns 
significantly more money  throughout a lifetime, returns more money 
to the tax  base and is better informed about issues and events  than 
a non-graduate. Students who are denied aid cannot  afford to pay for 
their education and many are forced  to drop out. While some return 
to college, others are  kept in lower income brackets, forced into 
low-wage  jobs, require support from public assistance 
programs,  and, in the worst cases, fall victim to a lifetime 
of  substance abuse or addiction.

It is undeniably in the best interest of this country  to facilitate 
completion of higher education. The  impact of the Aid Elimination 
Penalty is obvious: We  are condemning our most motivated students - 
our future  - to punishment above and beyond what is already  allowed 
through the criminal court system. This  provision is a blatant 
violation of our Constitutional  Fifth Amendment right to due 
process, not to mention  that our economy and global viability are 
damaged each time a student is blocked from receiving an education.

Voters and taxpayers must call upon our state  legislators and the 
Commission on Higher Education  demanding that a new system be 
adopted for state  financial aid processing - one that does not 
unfairly target students with drug convictions. We must also  call 
upon Congress to repeal the Aid Elimination  Penalty altogether. More 
information on this issue and  others is available from Students for 
Sensible Drug  Policy at CSU by e-mail at  or from 
the Coalition for Higher Education Act Reform at  www.raiseyourvoice. com.
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MAP posted-by: Elaine