RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:           16 November 2004
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR2004105270


      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             |
|     |Mrs. Nancy L. Amos                |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Melvin H. Meyer               |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Ms. Eloise C. Prendergast         |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Robert Rogers                 |     |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 that his Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC)
debt be waived.

2.  The applicant makes no statement with his application.  In his appeal
to his disenrollment action, he stated that his regret was that he was
forced to be disenrolled.  He had hoped to work at an Army hospital as a
social worker.  The repayment presents an undue hardship for both him and
his family.  The director of the ROTC program at Jacksonville State
University recommended he not be required to repay the debt.  He has been
diagnosed with a serious anxiety disorder and attention deficit combined
with a learning disability in mathematics.  He states this information
concurs with the reasons for his disenrollment.

3.  The applicant provides his disenrollment board proceedings; an ROTC
Cadet Command Form 131-R (Cadet Action Request); his notice of
disenrollment; his appeal and Headquarters, U. S. Army Cadet Command's 13
February 2004 response; and a letter dated 14 April 2004 from Alabama
Psychiatric Services, P.C.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant's Cadet Record Brief shows he was serving in the Army
National Guard when he enlisted in the U. S. Army Reserve Control Group
(ROTC) on 12 September 2002.

2.  The applicant's DA Form 597-3 (Army Senior Reserve Officers' Training
Corps (ROTC) Scholarship Cadet Contract) is not available.  Paragraph 5 of
the DA Form 597-3 (version dated July 2002) of the applicant's contract
would have stated that he understood and agreed that once he became
obligated and was disenrolled from the ROTC program for breach of
contractual terms or any other disenrollment criteria established now or in
the future by Army regulations (which included, but were not limited to,
Army Regulation 145-1) incorporated therein by reference, he was subject to
the terms listed in paragraphs 5a through 5e.

3.  Paragraph 5a of the applicant's DA Form 597-3 would have stated that if
he were disenrolled from the ROTC program after the point of obligation,
the Secretary of the Army could order him to active duty as an enlisted
soldier for a period of not more than four years.  Paragraph 5b would have
stated, in lieu of being ordered to active duty, the Secretary of the Army
could require him to
reimburse the United States through repayment of an amount of money, plus
interest, equal to the entire amount of financial assistance paid by the
United States for his advanced education from the commencement of the
contractual agreement to the date of his disenrollment.  He understood that
he could be deemed to have failed to comply with the terms and conditions
of the contract (breach of contract) regardless of whether he knew that the
failure violated the contract and regardless of whether the failure was the
result of an act or omission on his part with a specific intent to avoid
responsibilities under the contract.

4.  On 6 August 2003, a board was held to determine if the applicant should
be allowed to return to the National Advanced Leadership Camp (NALC) the
following year and/or retained in ROTC.  That board noted that the
applicant had the heart and desire to work on his deficiencies but found
that the University could not devote enough time to him to allow him to
overcome those deficiencies. The board found he lacked command presence,
displayed little self-confidence, and was in the bottom third of his class
at school and at the bottom of his platoon.  He struggled to demonstrate
that he possessed the necessary mental capacity and skills expected of NALC
graduates.  The board recommended he not receive camp credit and that he be
disenrolled from the ROTC Program.

5.  The applicant's battalion commander/professor of military science (PMS)
recommended, on 19 September 2003, that the applicant not be required to
pay back his scholarship.  He noted that the applicant had tremendous heart
and desire but could not overcome an inability to function well under
pressure.  He believed the applicant's contributions to the program and the
example of determination and attitude he set for the other cadets merited
the scholarship money he was awarded.

6.  On 6 October 2003, the applicant was honorably discharged from the Army
National Guard of Alabama and as a Reserve of the Army under the provisions
of National Guard Regulation 600-200, paragraph 8-26b(1) with a
reenlistment code of RE-3 (enrolled or disenrolled in the ROTC advanced
course with RE code 1 for enrollment and RE code 3 for disenrollment).

7.  By letter dated December 2003 (day illegible), the applicant was
informed he was in breach of his ROTC scholarship contract and was
disenrolled from the ROTC Program based on his dismissal from the NALC.  He
was offered the option of being ordered to active duty in an enlisted
status, of repaying the cost ($4,245.00) of his scholarship, or of
appealing/disputing the amount or validity of
the debt.  He was instructed to provide his appeal within 14 days of his
receipt of the letter.

8.  The applicant's appeal of the debt is dated 5 January 2004.  Apparently
Headquarters, U. S. Army Cadet Command did not receive it until 22 January
2004.  The debt had been established with the Defense Finance and
Accounting Service on 16 January 2004.

9.  The 14 April 2004 letter provided by the applicant is from Doctor A___.
 Doctor A___ states she initially met with the applicant on 24 October 2003
for a psychiatric evaluation.  She referred him for a psychological
evaluation, which was performed on 17 November 2003.  The psychologist
determined the applicant had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD), Combined Type; Learning Disorder of Math; Learning Disorder of
Written Expression; Anxiety Disorder, not otherwise specified; and
Dysthymic Disorder as well as a personality disorder.  Doctor A___ also
prescribed a stimulant medication, Concerta, for the ADHD.

10.  In the processing of this case, an advisory opinion was obtained from
the Director, Personnel and Administration, Headquarters, U. S. Army Cadet
Command.  That office noted the applicant breached the terms of his ROTC
contract and was disenrolled from the ROTC Program for failing to complete
NALC.  The applicant is requesting forgiveness of the debt because he did
not choose to be disenrolled and his PMS recommended he not be required to
repay.  That office stated the applicant was notified on 13 August 2003
that the recommendations of the PMS were not binding upon the disenrollment
approval authority.  That office recommended the applicant reimburse the
government for his advanced educational assistance.

11.  A copy of the advisory opinion was provided to the applicant for
comment or rebuttal.  He did not respond within the given time frame.

12.  Army Regulation 145-1 (Senior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Program:  Organization, Administration, and Training), version effective 22
August 1996, paragraph 3-43 states that nonscholarship and scholarship
cadets will be disenrolled for 17 listed reasons including (16) breach of
contract (defined as any act, performance or nonperformance on the part of
a student that breaches the terms of the contract regardless of whether the
act, performance or nonperformance as done with specific intent to breach
the contract or whether the student knew that the act, performance or
nonperformance breaches the contract).

13.  Cadet Command Pamphlet 145-4 (Enrollment, Retention, and Disenrollment
Criteria, Policy, and Procedures), dated 1 September 1994, states that the
PMS will submit a request for determination/waiver on medically
disqualified cadets to Headquarters, Cadet Command.  If the Cadet Command
Surgeon determines that the cadet is medically disqualified and not
eligible for waiver and there is no failure to disclose, the cadet will be
processed for disenrollment.  Cadets disenrolled for medical
disqualification will not be ordered to active duty or recommended for
recoupment.

14.  Army Regulation 40-501 (Standards of Medical Fitness) chapter 2
governs the physical standards for enlistment, appointment, and induction.
Paragraph     2-31 states that a history of an anxiety, somatoform,
dissociative, or fractitius disorder that results in symptoms or behavior
of a repeated nature which impaired social, school, or work efficiency is a
cause for rejection.  Paragraph     2-32d states that specific academic
skills disorders, a chronic history of academic skills disorders, or
perceptual defects secondary to organic or functional mental disorders that
interfere with work or school after age 12 are causes for rejection.
Current use of medication to improve or maintain academic skills disorders
is disqualifying.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was diagnosed, prior to his disenrollment from ROTC, with
a medical condition that was a cause for rejection for appointment.  The
disenrollment board members recognized that he "struggled to demonstrate
that he possessed the necessary mental capacity (emphasis added)…" to
continue in ROTC.  At that point, the Army was remiss by not recommending
the applicant receive a medical examination by a military medical officer
to determine if he was medically qualified to continue in ROTC or to be
ordered to active duty.

2.  Because of the nature of the applicant's diagnosed condition, it is
unlikely that he knew exactly what his medical problem was or even that he
had any medical problem prior to his evaluation in October 2003.
Therefore, there is insufficient evidence to show that he deliberately
failed to disclose his medical condition from Army authorities.

3.  While his PMS provided an insufficient reason to recommend the
applicant not be required to repay his ROTC scholarship debt, by regulation
cadets disenrolled for medical disqualification will not be ordered to
active duty or recommended for recoupment.

BOARD VOTE:

__mhm___  __ecp___  __rr____  GRANT 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:

     a.   showing that he was disenrolled from ROTC by reason of a medical
disqualification and that there was no failure to disclose; and

     b.  by canceling his ROTC debt and refunding to him any portion of the
debt, if any, already collected.




            __Melvin H. Meyer____
                    CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2004105270                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20041116                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |GRANT                                   |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Schneider                           |
|ISSUES         1.       |128.10                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


-----------------------
[pic]