Education: One Oath Is Enough

After swearing allegiance to the U.S., should a college student who gets a federal loan also have to file an affidavit that he is not subversive? Yes, according to the National Defense Education Act. No, according to 16 colleges and universities that now refuse to take part in the $30 million Federal Student Loan Program, and to many others who participate unhappily. When Harvard and Yale recently quit in protest (TIME, Nov. 30), they declared that the "disclaimer affidavit" is i) superfluous and 2) discriminating against students. Yale's President A. Whitney Griswold called the affidavit reminiscent of "the oppressive religious...

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