RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        10 January 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050011725


      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. John J. Wendland, Jr.         |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Kenneth L. Wright             |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Dale E. DeBruler              |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Qawiy A. Sabree               |     |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 his debt for not completing the
requirements of a Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) scholarship be
forgiven based on his enlistment in the active Army.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he entered active duty in the
U.S. Army on 28 October 2003 in order to satisfy the ROTC scholarship debt
he incurred from 1994 to 1998.

3.  The applicant provides the following documents in support of his
application:  DD Form 4 Series (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document - Armed
Forces of the United States), dated 28 October 2003; DD Form 1966 Series
(Record of Military Processing - Armed Forces of the United States), dated
28 October 2003; USAREC Form 1150 (Statement of Understanding - Army
Policy), dated 26 April 2003; DA Form 3286-59 (Statement for Enlistment -
United States Army Enlistment Program, U.S. Army Delayed Enlistment
Program), dated 26 April 2003; DA Form 3286-66 (Statement of Understanding
- United States Army Incentive Enlistment Program), dated 26 April 2003; DA
Form 3286-67 (Statement of Understanding - Army Policy), dated 26 April
2003; DA Form
3286-63 (Statement for Enlistment - United States Army Training Enlistment
Program), dated 28 October 2003; DD Form 2475 (DOD Educational Loan
Repayment Program (LRP) Annual Application), dated 29 June 2005; and a
Headquarters, U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Alexandria, Virginia
memorandum from the Chief, Education Incentives and Counseling Branch
(undated).

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant's military personnel record shows that he enlisted in the
U.S. Army Reserve on 26 April 2003 and entered active duty in the Regular
Army on 28 October 2003 for a period of 6 years.  Upon completion of basic
combat training and advanced individual training, the applicant was awarded
military occupational specialty (MOS) 18E (Special Forces Communications)
and is currently serving in the rank of specialist/pay grade E-4.

2.  The applicant's Official Military Personnel File is absent
documentation relating to his ROTC contract.  On 19 August 2005, the
applicant was asked to provide a copy of his ROTC contract in support of
his application; however, to date, he has failed to provide a copy to this
Board.


3.  The applicant provided documentation relating to his enlistment in the
U.S. Army Reserve and Regular Army that shows the terms and enlistment
options he contracted for upon entry on active duty in the Army.  He also
provided documents relating to his DOD Educational LRP Annual Application.
These documents offer evidence of the applicant's enlistment options.

4.  In the preparation of this case, an advisory opinion was obtained from
the Deputy Chief of Staff, G1, U.S. Army Cadet Command (USACC), Fort
Monroe, Virginia, dated 27 October 2005.  It states that the applicant
breached the terms of his ROTC contract and chose to waive his rights to a
hearing.  The advisory opinion also states that the terms of the
scholarship contract require that a cadet either repay his debt monetarily
or agree to be ordered to active duty through ROTC channels based on the
needs of the Army.  It further states that the applicant was offered these
options on 7 December 1999 after being disenrolled from the ROTC program
for breach of contract.  The choice of options was returned, the applicant
chose monetary repayment, and a debt was established with the Defense
Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) - Denver on
16 February 2000.

5.  The USACC advisory opinion also states that the applicant's decision to
breach his ROTC contract and his declination of enlistment in the Army were
voluntary actions.  Further, they opined that his subsequent voluntary
enlistment in the Regular Army is not an authorized remedy for debt
repayment under the terms of his ROTC contract.  Therefore, his voluntary
enlistment should not reduce the amount he is required to reimburse the
United States for his advanced educational assistance.  The USACC advisory
opinion also included a report based on data from the Center for Accessions
Research, U.S. Army Accessions Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky, dated 18
October 2005, which shows that the applicant's current debt (i.e., balance
due on that date) as $10,869.46.

6.  On 8 November 2005, the applicant was provided a copy of the USACC
advisory opinion and was given an opportunity to provide a rebuttal.
However, to date, he has failed to respond.

7.  The applicant's military records contain an enlistment contract (DD
Form 4 Series), dated 28 October 2003, which confirms he entered on active
duty in the Regular Army for a period of 6 years in the rank of private
first class/pay grade
E-3.  This document also confirms the applicant was given his choice of
MOS, that he chose MOS 18X (Special Forces Recruit), was provided an
$18,000 cash bonus, and he enrolled in the Army LRP.

8.  There is no indication on the applicant's enlistment contract, nor is
there any other evidence of record, which shows that his enlistment in the
Army was for the purpose of fulfilling the obligation he incurred as a
result of his being disenrolled from the ROTC program for breach of
contract.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends, in effect, that he is satisfying his ROTC
scholarship debt with military service and that the debt should be forgiven
or paid through the Army LRP.  However, there is no provision of law or
regulation that would automatically relinquish a debt simply for performing
military service or repayment of an ROTC scholarship debt via the Army LRP.

2.  The evidence of record shows that during the process of disenrolling
the applicant from the ROTC program for breach of contract, he was afforded
the opportunity to repay the debt monetarily or agree to be ordered to
active duty through ROTC channels based on the needs of the Army.  The
applicant chose the option of monetary repayment and a debt was established
with the DFAS in accordance with the terms of his ROTC contractual
agreement.

3.  Had the applicant elected an expeditious call to active duty to satisfy
his ROTC debt caused by his disenrollment, he would have been assigned
against the needs of the Army, in pay grade E-1, and not provided any
enlistment options.  However, under the terms of his subsequent enlistment,
he was allowed to enlist in pay grade E-3, was able to choose his MOS and
receive an $18,000 cash enlistment bonus, and enroll in the Army LRP.

4.  In view of the fact that the applicant was granted generous options in
connection with his enlistment, it would not be appropriate to also use his
military service during this enlistment as a basis for canceling his ROTC
debt.  The prospect of negating the applicant's $10,869.46 debt for a free
education he received from the Army without becoming an officer, plus
allowing him to receive an $18,000.00 enlistment bonus he ordinarily would
not have received, is a windfall.  While the Board has no jurisdiction to
stop the enlistment bonus in this case, the bonus is a legitimate factor to
consider in denying equitable relief regarding the ROTC debt.  Therefore,
in view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's
request.

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

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__KLW__  __DED __  __QAS __  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable
error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board determined that the overall
merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the
records of the individual concerned.





                                  ___KENNETH L. WRIGHT___
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050011725                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060110                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Chun                                |
|ISSUES         1.       |112.1200.0000                           |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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