One in 400 Students Lose Aid Because of Drugs

A law that strips financial aid from students who admit to past drug offenses resulted in one in 400 applicants being denied federal education assistance, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education.

USA Today, in April 2006, reported that the data -- obtained by the group Students for Sensible Drug Policy under threat of a lawsuit -- showed that 189,065 students have been denied financial aid since the law went into effect during the 2000-01 school year.

"I think it's important that all members (of Congress) know exactly how many of their constituents' lives have been ruined by this policy," says SSDP campaign director Tom Angell.

A majority of students were able to restore their eligibility by completing a drug rehabilitation program, an Education Department spokesperson said.

Indiana -- the home state of Rep. Marc Souder, the sponsor of the law that put the aid ban into place -- had the most students rejected because of drug use. The law has recently been modified to only affect those who commit drug offenses during college, not those who ran afoul of drug laws before they began their higher education.

"The principle remains the same: the American taxpayer should not be subsidizing the education of those students who are convicted of dealing or using illegal drugs," said Souder (R-Ind.).

Other states with large numbers of students who lost their aid because of their drug history included Oregon, California, Washington, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Connecticut, Arkansas, Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Iowa, and Alaska.

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