PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:     

	BOARD DATE:           10 April 2003                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002072979

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.  

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. Edmund P. Mercanti		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Fred N. Eichorn		Chairperson	
	Mr. Lester Echols		Member	
	Mr. Marla J. N. Troup		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
                records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests that she be given the $20,000.00 Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP) she contracted to receive.

3.  The applicant states that she was told when she inquired about the amount of SLRP she would be entitled to receive for enlisting in a critical MOS.  Her recruiter told her that she was entitled to the $20,000.00 SLRP.  Based upon that assurance, she signed an enlistment addendum for the $20,000.00 SLRP.  When she submitted her student loans for payment on 15 November 2000, she discovered that an error was made, that her MOS was only entitled to the $10,000.00 SLRP when she enlisted.  Her student loan payoff is around $14,500.00, and the $4,500.00 not covered under the SLRP has created a financial hardship for her.

4.  The applicant’s military records show that she enlisted in the Army Reserve with no prior service on 5 July 1989.  She was awarded the military occupational specialty (MOS) of eye specialist, was promoted to pay grade E-4, and was awarded the second MOS of respiratory specialist. 

5.  On 11 May 1997, the applicant reenlisted for 6 years in the Army Reserve.  In conjunction with that reenlistment she signed addenda for a $2,500.00 cash bonus and a $20,000.00 SLRP.

6.  Army Regulation 135-7 provides guidance on the SLRP.  The SLRP is an educational program administered by the Department of the Army for reservists who enlist, reenlist or extend their enlistments in the selected reserve (USAR unit or individual mobilization augmentee) for 3 or more years.  SLRP payments may only be made to lending institutions that made the student loans.  The Army will not pay off defaulted student loans or reimburse a soldier or an alternate lending institution for student loans that have been paid in full.

7.  Army Regulation 135-178 sets forth the basic authority for the separation of reserve enlisted personnel.  Chapter 9 provides for individuals who were promised a benefit in conjunction with their enlistment or reenlistment which the Army cannot honor.  These individuals have the option of either requesting immediate discharge or waiving the benefit and remaining in the USAR.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant reasonably believed that she had up to $20,000.00 in student loan repayment under her SLRP addendum.

2.  As a result of that belief, she incurred $4,500.00 in student loans over what was covered under the SLRP.

3.  It would appear that the $20,000.00 SLRP was a major factor in the applicant's decision to enlist.  To offer the applicant a discharge due to defective enlistment now, more than 5 ½ years after her enlistment, is not fair or equitable.  The Army has benefited from the applicant's service for a lengthy period of time.  If the error had been discovered earlier in the applicant's enlistment, the option of discharge, or retention without the $20,000.00 SLRP, would have been appropriate.

4.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing that the MOS of the individual concerned was authorized a $20,000.00 SLRP when she reenlisted on 11 May 1997, as an exception to policy, in this case only.

BOARD VOTE:  

___fne___  ___mjnt_  ___le____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		_________Fred N. Eichorn______
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002072979	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20030410	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	128.05	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.