BOARD DATE: 29 October 2013 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130010831 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests, in effect, adjustment of her date of rank (DOR) to captain (CPT) from 14 July 2012 to her original DOR of 1 August 2008. 2. The applicant states: a. Her original year group was 2005 and her original DOR to CPT was 1 August 2008. Her year group is now 2012 and her DOR to CPT is 14 July 2012. She is a Logistics Corps (LG) officer who recently decided to attend the Interservice Physician Assistant Program (IPAP). She was re-branched to the Medical Specialist (SP) Corps and her DOR and year group were recalculated using the constructive service credit (CSC) process. b. She began attending IPAP on 3 January 2013. She resigned for personal reasons on 29 April 2013 and was returned to the LG effective 29 May 2013. She is behind her peers in her year group who have already been promoted to major (MAJ). Her branch stated that she would qualify for a special board for MAJ as she already missed this year's board. However, her DOR and year group must be adjusted before she can apply for the special board. 3. The applicant provides: * three DA Forms 71 (Oath of Office – Military Personnel) * two orders * DA Form 5074-1-R (Record of Award of Entry Grade Credit (Health Services Officers)) * DA Form 1059 (Service School Academic Evaluation Report) CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Having had prior enlisted service, the applicant was appointed as a second lieutenant Regular Army (RA) commissioned officer in the Ordnance (OD) branch and executed an Oath of Office with a concurrent call to active duty on 30 June 2005. 2. She attended and successfully completed the OD Officer Basic Course from 18 July to 6 December 2005. She was promoted to first lieutenant (1LT) on 30 December 2006 and to CPT on 1 August 2008. 3. She attended and successfully completed the Combined Logistics CPTs Career Course from 1 December 2009 to 7 May 2010. 4. In August 2011, she signed a Statement of Understanding for IPAP (RA Officer). She understood she would: * be conditionally reappointed as a SP Corps officer in the RA * attend training in a student status with area of concentration 65D (PA) and would wear a rank as determined by CSC * be awarded 3 years, 6 months, and 15 days of CSC * upon completion of this program, incur an active duty service obligation of 54 months beyond the date of graduation 5. The applicant provides and her records contain a DA Form 5074-1-R, dated 22 March 2012, wherein it shows she was awarded 3 years, 6 months, and 15 days of constructive service credit based on her prior commissioned active service from 30 June 2005 to 29 July 2012. Furthermore, 3 years and 6 months were required for appointment as a CPT with the excess credit to be applied toward her DOR. 6. On 29 July 2012, she executed an Oath of Office as an RA CPT in the U.S. Army Medical Department (AMEDD) SP Corps. 7. Orders Number 031-006, dated 31 January 2013, issued by U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC), adjusted her active DOR (ADOR) to CPT to 14 July 2012. 8. The applicant provides a DA Form 1059, dated 2 May 2013, wherein it shows she attended the IPAP from 10 December 2012 to 29 April 2013, given at the AMEDD Center and School, Fort Sam Houston, TX. This form stated the applicant was released from the course due to her letter of resignation. 9. On 30 May 2013, she executed an Oath of Office as an RA CPT in the OD branch. Her DOR to CPT remained 14 July 2012. 10. In the processing of this case an advisory opinion, dated 16 August 2013, was obtained from the Chief, Officer Promotions Management, HRC. The advisory official recommended disapproval of the applicant's request and opined: a. In accordance with Department of Defense Instruction (DODI) Number 6000.13 ( Medical Manpower and Personnel), paragraph 6.1.1.2, dated 30 June 1997; Military Personnel (MILPER) Message Number 11-263, IPAP Army Selection Board Results, paragraph 8, dated 29 August 2011; and Army Regulation 614-100 (Officer Assignment Policies, Detail, and Transfer), paragraph 4-2, dated 10 January 2006, the applicant's rank and DOR are correct. b. The applicant voluntarily entered the Army Specialist program through the IPAP and concurred with the requirements set forth in MILPER Message 11-263. As such, she agreed to negate her original appointment in the Active Competitive Category (ACC) in accordance with Army Regulation 614-100, paragraph 4-2, which stated that acceptance in the new appointment would negate the original appointment. After the applicant voluntarily resigned from the IPAP, she was reappointed back to the OD branch; however, her grade and DOR remained the same as when appointed to the IPAP because the aforementioned Army Competitive Category (ACC) DOR had been previously negated. 11. In a response to the advisory opinion, dated 11 September 2013, the applicant stated: a. She applied for and was accepted to attend the IPAP in August 2011. She is an OD officer by trade with over 15 years in the Army and prior enlisted experience as an ammunition specialist. She reported to Fort Sam Houston, TX, on 29 July 2012 to attend the Requirements Completion Course (RCC) which required her to execute an Oath of Office and be reappointed to the SP Corps. From August to December 2012, she completed the RCC and received As in all five classes. b. Her son was born in 2007 with a congenital shortened femur of the left leg and was enrolled in the Exceptional Family Member Program. Since birth, his condition has been monitored closely. In October 2012, he was seen at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, and, on 17 December 2012, he had his first leg lengthening surgery. On 27 December 2012, they began the lengthening process by rotating his external fixator rods four turns a day. It was supposed to last 21 days but continued through 6 February 2013. Her son was in severe pain regardless of the medication he was given to alleviate the pain. c. Her mother had lived with her since her twins were born and her mother took her son to every follow-up appointment so she would not miss any class time. Her studies began to suffer and she hired a tutor at her own expense, but it was impossible to catch up no matter how hard she tried. By the end of the semester, she failed three courses by a few questions each. She voluntarily resigned from the IPAP on 18 April 2013 and officially resigned on 29 April 2013. d. She has had a stellar 15-year career and has always been on the fast track. In 2000, she was the Soldier of the Rotation at Fort Irwin, CA, while assigned as a specialist/E-4. She was the Battalion, Brigade, and Post Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) of the Quarter for 2nd Quarter, Fiscal Year 2001(FY01) at Fort Knox, KY. She won Battalion NCO of the year in FY01 and was inducted into the prestigious Sergeant Audie Murphy Club, all as a young sergeant/E-5. She attended Officer Candidate School in 2005 and became a commissioned officer. She was named Honor Graduate for her OD Officer Basic Course and received the National Defense Industrial Association Award for having the highest composite academic, leadership, and physical proficiency scores in her class. e. Her drive for excellence has never been satisfied and she is always seeking out ways to better herself so she applied to the IPAP program. She feels she was very fortunate to have had the opportunity to do so and feels she did better than most could have done in her situation. However, she did not meet the requirements and was not afforded a recycle even though she did ask for one. As this was her son's first surgery, she could not have anticipated the pain and suffering he would have to face. He suffered complications with pin-site infections and life-threatening blood clots in his knee. f. She wants to continue her career in the Army as a Logistics officer and desires to be competitive with her peers for promotion and opportunities. If her DOR is not reinstated, her first look for MAJ in the primary zone will not occur until 2020, in which she would have 22 years of military service. 12. Title 10, U.S. Code (USC), section 533(a)(1) states a person receiving an original appointment shall be credited with any prior active commissioned service performed before such appointment; and DODI 1312.03, paragraph 6.1. indicates a person's entry grade credit for determining grade and DOR shall be the sum of prior commissioned service allowed and the amount of constructive service allowed. In cases of an original appointment to a basic branch in the Army an individual may receive prior active commissioned service credit, but may not receive constructive service credit because an advanced degree or specialized experience is not required for the appointment. 13. Title 10, USC, section 101b, states in sub-paragraph b(10) the following definitions relating to military personnel apply in this Title: the term "original," with respect to the appointment of a member of the armed forces in a regular or Reserve Component, refers to that member’s most recent appointment in that component that is neither a promotion nor a demotion. 14. Army Regulation 600-8-29 (Officer Promotions) prescribes the officer promotion function of the military personnel system. a. Paragraph 1-39 (Precedence or relative rank of commissioned officers) states precedence or relative rank of commissioned officers, whether or not on active duty, is based first on grade. Except as provided in subparagraph c, precedence or relative rank among commissioned officers on the ADL is based on the following criteria, in the order given: (1) Current grade in which serving on the ADL; (2) Current ADOR; (3) ADOR of commissioned grade in which previously served on active duty (other than for training); (4) Previous active duty grade or relative seniority, if applicable. This rule maintains the relative precedence and seniority as it existed in a prior service grade; (5) Total active Federal commissioned service (AFCS); (6) Date of appointment as a commissioned officer; (7) Date of birth (age takes precedence); and (8) Alphabetical order. b. Paragraph 1-40 (Determining active date of rank for commissioned officers) states in sub-paragraph 1-40b, the ADOR of an officer receiving an original appointment as an RA commissioned officer, other than as stated in chapter 2, is the date the appointment is accepted unless: (1) The officer was, at the time of appointment, a Reserve officer on the ADL, in which case the ADOR is the same as that which the officer held immediately before his or her appointment as an RA officer. (2) The officer was, at the time of appointment, a Reserve officer not on the ADL, in which case the ADOR will be the one the officer would have had immediately before the appointment as an RA officer had the officer been placed on the ADL as a Reserve officer on that date. (3) The appointee was not, at the time of appointment, a Reserve officer, but was awarded entry grade credit under Title 10, USC, section 533, in which case the ADOR will be backdated to the extent that the entry grade credit awarded exceeds that required for the officer’s appointment grade under applicable Army regulations and circulars. (4) The officer was, at the time of appointment, a Regular officer in another service, and the officer is the subject of an interservice transfer, in which case the ADOR will be the same as the officer’s ADOR in the other service (officers who received constructive service credit see paragraph 1–25). (5) The officer is, at the time of appointment, an RA officer and the new original appointment will effect a change in the officer’s status from a special branch to a basic branch, from a basic branch to a special branch, or between special branches. In these cases the ADOR will be recomputed in accordance with paragraph 1–38 [sic] (1-39) above, except that in no event will the officer’s ADOR in the new original appointment be later than the ADOR held in the next precedent appointment. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The applicant was commissioned in the Ordnance branch on 30 June 2005. She was promoted to CPT on 1 August 2008. In August 2011, she voluntarily signed a statement of understanding for the IPAP and concurred with the requirements of this program. In doing so, she agreed to negate her original appointment. 2. Also in doing so, she was appointed in the Specialist Corps as a CPT. Her new DOR to CPT was established/adjusted based on the constructive service credit she was awarded or authorized. HRC adjusted her DOR to 14 July 2012. 3. The applicant then voluntarily chose to withdraw from the IPAP due to personal reasons and return to the Ordnance branch. When this was done, she was given a DOR of 14 July 2012 as a CPT based on the most recent appointment in the IPAP. 4. However, notwithstanding the advisory opinion, by regulation the ADOR of an officer receiving an original appointment as an RA commissioned officer is the date the appointment is accepted, unless the officer is, at the time of appointment, an RA officer and the new original appointment will effect a change in the officer’s status from a special branch to a basic branch, from a basic branch to a special branch, or between special branches. 5. In these cases the ADOR will be recomputed in accordance with the precedence or relative rank among commissioned officers on the ADL, which is based on various criteria, in the order given - in the applicant's case, the ADOR of the commissioned grade in which she previously served on active duty (other than for training). Since the ADOR in which she previously served was 1 August 2008, when she returned to the basic branch (Ordnance), she should have received that date of rank. 6. In view of the foregoing, she is entitled to the requested relief. BOARD VOTE: __X___ ___X_____ ____X____ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by correcting her records to show her date of rank to captain as 1 August 2008. _______ _ X _______ ___ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130010831 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130010831 7 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1