July 6, 2005
Uneducated
I didn’t know this: a provision in the 1998 Higher Education Act denies college financial aid to people with drug convictions on their records—and has done so to more than 160,500 would-be students. As Ruth Blauer, executive director of the Maine Association of Substance Abuse Programs, points out, this is insane:
Preventing people from higher education does nothing to prevent drug abuse or help people get over their addictions. Actually, being enrolled in college reduces the likelihood that people will head down the path to drug abuse.
According to a 2004 report from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 18 percent of college students have used an illicit drug other than marijuana in the past year, compared to 24 percent of their same-age peers who aren’t enrolled in college. Five percent of college students have used cocaine in the past year, while nine percent of their same-age peers have.
Additionally, receiving an education reduces the likelihood that individuals coming out of prison will return to engaging in illegal activity, including drug use.
The Correctional Education Association found that prisoners who receive at least two years of higher education have only a 10 percent [re]arrest rate, compared with a national rearrest rate of about 60 percent.
… Graduating more college students [also] means increased tax revenue from greater economic productivity, whereas incarcerating more prisoners means that taxpayers must pay the bill for increased criminal justice spending.
Bauer notes that more than 200 organizations, including the American Public Health Association and the National Association for Public Health Policy have asked Congress to repeal the HEA drug provision. The Removing Impediments to Students’ Education Act, a House bill that would repeal the HEA provision, has 67 co-sponsors. But there isn’t yet a similar bill in the Senate.
Which is also insane.
More drug-war madness here. And thanks to Drug WarRant for the tip.
Posted by Stephen at 10:16 PM in Drugs | Permalink | TrackBack (0)
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.disinterestedparty.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-t.cgi/297
