| Mr. Carl W. S. Chun | Director | |
| Mr. Walter Avery, Jr. | Analyst |
| Mr. John H. Kern | Chairperson | |
| Mr. Thomas Lanyi | Member | |
| Ms. Paula Mokulis | Member |
2. The applicant requests that his student loans be paid in accordance with the terms of his Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP) Addendum.
3. The applicant states he signed an SLRP contract at enlistment, therefore the terms of it should be honored by the Army.
4. In support of his request, he has provided a copy of a letter from the 3D Personnel Command, US Army Reserve (USAR), requesting that an exception to policy be made to grant him the SLRP based on no fault of his own. The letter outlines that after reviewing the applicant’s enlistment contract it was noted that there were many errors made in its preparation and that the applicant had made several attempts to submit loans for repayment. However, the USAR, SLRP Administrator, Fort McCoy, Wisconsin declined to honor the requests.
5. The applicant’s military records show that on 2 November 1995, he enlisted in the USAR for eight years. The evidence or record includes the enlistment contract prepared on him at the time of his enlistment in the USAR.
6. A DA Form 5261-R (SLRP-Addendum) contained in the record confirms the SLRP contractual agreement entered into by the applicant and the Army at the time of his enlistment. Section II (Instructions) of the form contains instructions and states, in pertinent part, that the service representative (recruiter) is responsible for reading and explaining the requirements outlined for receipt of the SLRP benefit.
7. Section III (Acknowledgement) contains the applicant’s acknowledgement that he was contracting for completion of initial active duty for training and qualification in military occupational specialty (MOS) 74B (Information Systems Operator-Analyst ), which Headquarters, Department of the Army (HQDA) had approved for a maximum of $10,000 in loan repayments.
8. Section V (Entitlement) indicated that the applicant understood that the SLRP applied to him in the form of a maximum repayment of $10,000 during his military career and that the amount repaid each year would not exceed 15% of the outstanding balance of his student loans.
9. Section IX (Certification by Service Representative) of the SLRP addendum contained the signature of the applicant’s recruiter. The recruiter certified that he witnessed the reading and signing of the SLRP agreement and attested to the fact that the signature on the document was that of the applicant. He also confirmed that he had verified that the applicant met the regulatory eligibility requirements for the SLRP and that the MOS he was enlisting for was currently eligible for the designated portion authorized for loan repayment shown in Section III.
10. On 2 November 1995, the applicant completed DA Form 3540/1 an addendum to DD Form 4/1 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document, Armed Forces of the United States). Section VII (Remarks) of the form contains notes that indicate the applicant was enlisting for a cash bonus and loan repayment.
11. On 17 March 1998, the applicant completed four DD Forms 2475 (Educational Loan Repayment Program (LRP) Annual Application), to submit for loan repayment under the SLRP.
12. A letter from the USAR, SLRP Administrator, Fort McCoy, Wisconsin dated 26 October 1998 stated that the MOS 74B, indicated on the applicant’s SLRP Addendum is not Department of the Army approved for the SLRP entitlement. It advises the applicant that he may apply to this Board for an exception to policy.
13. AR 135-7 provides, in pertinent part, that the SLRP is restricted to those reservists who either enlist or reenlist for a skill or unit approved by the Department. This educational incentive may only be elected at the time of enlistment or reenlistment. This incentive pays a limited sum of money to a lending institution on the anniversary date of an enlistment or reenlistment. These payments continue on a yearly basis unless the soldier loses eligibility.
14. AR 601-210 provides, in pertinent part, that recruiting personnel must ensure that persons applying for specific options are informed of the precise nature of the commitment; the extent to which specific option will satisfy the applicant's personal desires; and that persons accepted for specific options possess the prescribed prerequisites necessary to meet performance standards of the Army.
15. Table 9-4 of the same regulation contains specific guidance on the SLRP and outlines the prerequisites that must be met in order to qualify for the SLRP in connection with an enlistment and states, in pertinent part, that a member must choose an MOS that is authorized by DA to receive the SLRP.
CONCLUSIONS:
1. The Board concedes that the applicant’s enlistment in MOS 74B was not on the approved HQDA list authorizing SLRP benefits at the time of his enlistment. However, a careful review of the evidence reveals that the SLRP addendum to the applicant’s enlistment contract clearly established a contractual agreement between the applicant and the Army that he would receive the SLRP benefits in connection with his enlistment for training in MOS 74B.
2. Section VIII of the SLRP addendum confirmed that the recruiter certified that the applicant was eligible for participation in the SLRP and that his enlistment MOS was on the HQDA approved list authorizing this option.
3. By regulation, a recruiter is obliged to ensure that persons accepted for specific enlistment options possess the prescribed prerequisites necessary to meet performance standards of the Army. In this case, the recruiter obviously failed to satisfy this regulatory responsibility as evidenced by the SLRP addendum contained in the record.
4. In the interest of justice and equity, the Board concludes that it would be appropriate to honor the applicant’s enlistment contract and to provide him the benefits agreed to in the SLRP addendum, as an exception to policy, as if his MOS were on the DA SLRP list at the time of his enlistment.
5. 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 individual concerned is entitled to receive the SLRP benefits, for MOS 74B, as stated on the SLRP addendum to his enlistment contract, as an exception to policy.
BOARD VOTE:
___pm___ ____jhk__ ___tl __ GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
__________John H. Kern ____
CHAIRPERSON
| CASE ID | AR2001054435 |
| SUFFIX | |
| RECON | 20010823 |
| DATE BOARDED | |
| TYPE OF DISCHARGE | (HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR) |
| DATE OF DISCHARGE | |
| DISCHARGE AUTHORITY | AR . . . . . |
| DISCHARGE REASON | |
| BOARD DECISION | (GRANT) |
| REVIEW AUTHORITY | |
| ISSUES 1. 103.01 | |
| 2. 128.06 | |
| 3. 128.10 | |
| 4. | |
| 5. | |
| 6. |
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