RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:         21 DECEMBER 2004
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR2004106842


      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             |
|     |Ms. Deborah L. Brantley           |     |Senior Analyst       |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Fred Eichorn                  |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Paul Smith                    |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Seema Salter                  |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests, in effect, that all of her son’s student loans
be repaid under the Student Loan Repayment Program.

2.  The applicant states that her son, an active Army enlisted Soldier, is
currently deployed to Iraq and that both she and her son understood that
all of his student loans would be repaid.  She states she believed that the
loans fell under ”supplemental loans for students” or “parent loan” as
noted on the “Loan Repayment Program Inprocessing Counseling” document
initialed by her son as part of his enlistment processing.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of the Loan Repayment Program
Inprocessing Counseling form initialed by her son on 12 September 2002

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Records available to the Board indicate the applicant’s son enlisted in
the United States Army Reserve, in pay grade E-4, on 12 September 2002
under the Delayed Entry/Enlistment Program.  On 21 November 2002 he was
discharged from the United States Army Reserve to enter active duty as a
Regular Army Soldier in pay grade E-4.

2.  At the time of his enlistment he completed several enlistment forms
indicating that the Student Loan Repayment Program was part of his
enlistment incentives.

3.  His enlistment incentives also included receipt of an $8000.00
enlistment bonus and training of choice.

4.  As part of his enlistment processing he signed a Department of the Army
Form 3286-66 (Statement of Understanding United States Army Incentive
Enlistment Program) indicating that he understood “that under this program
(LRP) that the government will repay a designated portion of any loan I
incurred that was made, insured or guaranteed, under Part B of the Higher
Education Action of 1965 (Guaranteed Student Loan) or any loan under Part E
of such act (National Direct Student Loan) after 1 October 1975 and before
I enlist into the Regular Army.”  The “Inprocessing” document provided by
his mother includes the same statement and while that form does list a
variety of types of loans that qualified, the loans were limited to those
meeting the above criteria.

5.  His enlistment document does not specify any specific loans, which were
to be repaid under his LRP enlistment incentive.  However, the document
does indicate that he was to provide copies of his loan promissory notes.

6.  In September and November 2003, while serving on active duty, the
applicant’s son submitted Department of Defense Forms 2475 (DOD Education
Loan Repayment Program Annual Application).  The forms requested payment of
his Sallie Mae Servicing Corporation Loan (Citibank) and his ACS Banking
(Sallie Mae Student Loan Consolidation Center).  On 18 November and 2
December 2003, officials at the United States Army Human Resources Command-
Alexandria responded to the applicant’s son stating that his loans
(totaling more than $10,000.00) were not payable under the LRP.

7.  Both Department of Defense Forms 2475 indicated the loan in question
were private loans.

8.  The LRP is an educational enlistment incentive which provides for
payment of a percentage of the unpaid principal of eligible student loans
for each year of active duty a Soldier completes.

9.  Title 10, U.S. Code, section 2171, limits loans that are eligible for
repayment under the LRP to those made, insured, or guaranteed under the
Higher Education Act of 1965.

10.  In the processing of this case an advisory opinion was provided by
officials from the United States Army Human Resources Command-Alexandria.
Those officials recommended the applicant’s petition be denied and
reemphasized that the applicant had acknowledged in his enlistment
documents that he understood that under the LRP “that the government will
repay a designated portion of any loan [he] incurred that was made, insured
or guaranteed under Part B of the Higher Education Act of 1965….”  They
noted that based on documentation provided the loans did not qualify for
repayment under the LRP and that they were private loans.  They did note
that the applicant had more than $23,000.00 of qualifying educational loans
where were being paid under the LRP.

11.  When given an opportunity to respond to the advisory opinion, the
applicant’s son did not respond.





DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  While the applicant and her son contend that they may have been misled
by his recruiter, neither he, nor the applicant, have provided any evidence
from a disinterested source, such as his recruiter, an official from the
recruiting office, or confirmation that the loans in question were provided
to the recruiter at the time of enlistment, which could be used to
independently substantiate their request.

2.  It is unfortunate that the applicant and/or her son may not have
understood that not all of his student loans were payable under the LRP.
While the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Board, under Title 10,
United States Code, section 1552, could pay the student loans by amending
her son’s enlistment contract should an error or injustice exist, in this
case, there is no evidence of error or injustice; consequently, there is no
basis to warrant amending the enlistment contract.

3.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must
show, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in
error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would
satisfy that requirement.

BOARD VOTE:

___FE __  ___PS __  ___SS___  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

Notwithstanding the discussion and conclusions in this case, 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 by:

      a.  amending the applicant’s DA Form 3286-66, Statement of
Understanding, US Army Incentive Enlistment Program, to include the
sentence “If SLRP benefits were authorized by the official processing you
for enlistment and the government fails to verify that the applicant was
eligible for these benefits under the provisions of Title 10 of the United
States Code, section 2171, and such failure results in nonpayment of the
loan(s) authorized for repayment under the SLRP terms of the enlistment
contract or the repayment or default of the loan(s), the Army Board for
Correction of Military Records may pay the loan(s), at its sole discretion,
in accordance with Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552.” and


      b.  that as a result of the above correction the Defense Finance and
Accounting Service (DFAS) shall remit payment to the applicant of the total
amount of the loans authorized for repayment under the terms of Annex C of
the applicant’s enlistment contract to which he is entitled as a result of
this correction at the appropriate rate and time.  According to the
advisory opinion that amount is $10,398.68.



                                  ______Fred Eichorn_______
                                            CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2004106842                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20041221                                |
|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.       |112.12                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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