Spring Break
Aid provision up for review
National study finds financial benefit cut does not deter drug use
Lindsey Lewandowski
Issue date: 10/10/05 Section: Campus News
Junior Meghan Hopper doesn't do drugs, but she knows someone who used to until he was caught with marijuana in a UW-Milwaukee residence hall.
Her friend no longer attends Milwaukee, partially because he lost his financial aid even after he stopped doing drugs.
But unlike Hopper's friend, a study conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office displayed the addition of a provision to the Higher Education Act that denies financial aid to students convicted of using drugs hasn't deterred them from doing so.
That provision, added in 1998, denied 175,000 students federal aid, and is up for reconsideration this year, according to a Sept. 29 Students for Sensible Drug Policy press release.
Hopper said she doesn't agree with taking away her friend's aid or anyone else's.
"It's a crime, obviously," she said of drug use, "but I think it's a disease too. It should be treated, not punished."
Tom Angell, a member of SSD, agreed.
"Education shouldn't be held hostage for the sake of drug war policies," he said.
"(The policy) is a deterrent to people becoming productive, tax-paying citizens. Everyone who loses their financial aid because of this law has already been punished through the criminal justice system."
Vice Chancellor Andy Soll agreed.
"If someone is convicted of a crime, they'd do a jail term," he said. "Society has a way for people to pay their debt and then move on with their life. I personally believe they should not be denied the opportunity to pursue an education and training that is going to put them on the right path."
Hopper, an English education major, said education is important and if college is the right place for someone, he or she will realize doing drugs isn't worth it.
"(If they) are motivated and are able to move on with their life, they realize drugs are bad for them," she said.
Soll said he wondered why it's necessary to just deny college students access to federal funding, because an adult convicted of a crime isn't denied access to Social Security or Medicaid, for example.
"Why are we denying college students (federal funding)?," Soll asked.
Angell said, especially right now, having access to financial aid is essential.
"We're living in a time when tuition and the cost of college is skyrocketing," he said. "How do we expect people to make better lives for themselves if they can't get money to go to college?"
Her friend no longer attends Milwaukee, partially because he lost his financial aid even after he stopped doing drugs.
But unlike Hopper's friend, a study conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office displayed the addition of a provision to the Higher Education Act that denies financial aid to students convicted of using drugs hasn't deterred them from doing so.
That provision, added in 1998, denied 175,000 students federal aid, and is up for reconsideration this year, according to a Sept. 29 Students for Sensible Drug Policy press release.
Hopper said she doesn't agree with taking away her friend's aid or anyone else's.
"It's a crime, obviously," she said of drug use, "but I think it's a disease too. It should be treated, not punished."
Tom Angell, a member of SSD, agreed.
"Education shouldn't be held hostage for the sake of drug war policies," he said.
"(The policy) is a deterrent to people becoming productive, tax-paying citizens. Everyone who loses their financial aid because of this law has already been punished through the criminal justice system."
Vice Chancellor Andy Soll agreed.
"If someone is convicted of a crime, they'd do a jail term," he said. "Society has a way for people to pay their debt and then move on with their life. I personally believe they should not be denied the opportunity to pursue an education and training that is going to put them on the right path."
Hopper, an English education major, said education is important and if college is the right place for someone, he or she will realize doing drugs isn't worth it.
"(If they) are motivated and are able to move on with their life, they realize drugs are bad for them," she said.
Soll said he wondered why it's necessary to just deny college students access to federal funding, because an adult convicted of a crime isn't denied access to Social Security or Medicaid, for example.
"Why are we denying college students (federal funding)?," Soll asked.
Angell said, especially right now, having access to financial aid is essential.
"We're living in a time when tuition and the cost of college is skyrocketing," he said. "How do we expect people to make better lives for themselves if they can't get money to go to college?"