A national student activist group and the American Civil Liberties Union are working to file a lawsuit to overturn legislation that denies financial aid to college students with drug convictions.
A drug provision added to the Higher Education Act in 2000 denies federal student aid to college students convicted of the sale or possession of drugs. Students for Sensible Drug Policy, a nationwide student organization for reforming the act, contends the provision is unconstitutional and that it has illegally cost 175,000 students their government aid.
“I think once someone has served their time they’ve paid their debt to society,” said Matt Atwood, a member of the SSDP board of directors. Atwood is a graduate of Loyola University and estimated that 20 to 30 of his peers had lost aid because of the law.
Robert Bennett, a professor of law at Northwestern who specializes in the Constitution, said he was skeptical of the SSDP’s claim that the drug provision is unconstitutional.
“The government has the power to spend money and attach conditions to the receipt of that money,” Bennett said.
According to NU’s Office of Undergraduate Financial Aid, the drug provision has not affected any NU students.
“We’ve never actually encountered an undergraduate student (who receives financial aid) that’s had a drug conviction for use or selling,” said Mike Mills, associate provost for university enrollment.
About 3,200 NU undergraduates receive financial aid, with only about 800 getting federal aid, Mills said. Federal student aid includes grants, loans and work-study jobs.
The drug provision only applies to students tried as adults. It calls for first-time drug offenders to be denied financial aid for one year for possession and two years for drug sales. Penalties increase with further offenses.
Students may regain their financial aid after successful completion of a recognized drug rehabilitation program.
Associated Student Government Lawyer Patty Marinakis said that in the course of a year she advises fewer than a dozen students charged with drug violations, all of which are usually misdemeanors. But she does not represent these students in court and has never advised a student on loss of aid, she said.
Whether any NU students have been convicted of misdemeanor violations and either completed a rehabilitation program or chosen not to apply for aid remains unclear.
NU students had mixed reactions to the prospect of losing financial aid due to drugs. Many financial aid recipients were unaware of the provision.
“Honestly, I don’t have a problem with (the provision) because drugs are bad,” said Jessica Bell, a Weinberg freshman. “It doesn’t affect me.”
McCormick freshman Keanen Ryan said he didn’t see how the law would deter students from using drugs.
“People before using drugs don’t think they will lose their financial aid,” he said.
Reach Jake Spring at [email protected].
