RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        17 November 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050015079


      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. Lester Echols                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. John E. Denning               |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Jeannette R. McCants          |     |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 NJCLASS loans be paid off as promised
by his recruiter and his Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS)
counselor.

2.  The applicant states he presented all NJCLASS loan documents to both
his recruiter and to his MEPS counselor and at no time was there a question
as to the eligibility of the loans for repayment under the Loan Repayment
Program (LRP).  The recruiter assured him the loans would qualify and all
NJCLASS loan documents were accepted by the MEPS counselor.

3.  The applicant provides two NJCLASS Repayment Disclosure Statements;
his enlistment contract; and a letter from the Education Incentives Branch,
U. S. Army Human Resources Command (USAHRC) dated 20 September 2005.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant entered the Delayed Entry Program on 26 March 2003.  His
Statement for Enlistment United States Army Enlistment Program shows he
enlisted for the LRP in addition to other incentives.  On this form, he
acknowledged that under the LRP the Government would 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 or any loan under Part E of such
act after 1 October 1975 and before he enlisted into the Regular Army.

2.  None of the applicant's enlistment documents (to include his DD Form
1966 (Record of Military Processing - Armed Forces of the United States))
identified what student loans he had.

3.  The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 1 October 2003.  Prior to
entry on active duty he had obtained several student loans.

4.  On 22 August 2005, the applicant applied for repayment of his NJCLASS
loans totaling $19,377.64.  On 20 September 2005, USAHRC notified the
applicant that his loans were not made, insured, or guaranteed under Title
IV Part B, D, or E of the Higher Education Act and were therefore
ineligible for repayment.

5.  On 16 November 2005, the Education Incentives Branch, USAHRC informed
the Board analyst the applicant had one qualifying loan, a consolidated
CitiBank loan, in the amount of $19,176.47.

6.  The Loan Repayment Program is a Department of the Army enlistment
option authorized by Public Law 99-145.  This option is designed to
increase Test Score Category I-IIIA accessions.  Loans that qualify for
repayment are Guaranteed Student Loan/Stafford Loans, National Direct
Student Loan/Perkins Loans, William D. Ford Loans, Supplemental Loans for
Students, Federally Insured Student Loans (FISL), Parent Loan for
Undergraduate Students (PLUS), Auxiliary Loan Assistance for Students
(ALAS), and consolidated loans which fall under Title IV, Part B or E of
the Higher Education Act of 1965, or William D. Ford Loan.  Before entering
active duty, the loan must not be in default.  The borrower is responsible
for obtaining a deferment/forbearance with the loan holder and the loan
must remain in good standing throughout the repayment process.  Active Army
LRP participants earn their first loan repayment after completion of a full
year of active duty and for each full year thereafter, up to       3 years.
 Payment of 33 1/3 percent or $1,500, whichever is greater, is authorized
annually to the loan holder on the total remaining original outstanding
principal balance.

7.  The Government will not make any payments to the Soldier or reimburse a
Soldier if he or she pays off a student loan.  The Government will only pay
the lending institution.

8.  Army Regulation 601-210 (Regular Army and Army Reserve Enlistment
Program) prescribes eligibility criteria governing the enlistment of
persons, with or without prior service, into the Regular Army and the U. S.
Army Reserve.  Chapter 9 (Enlistment Programs/Options) states that these
programs/options are designed to merge valid Army requirements with
personal desires.

9.  Army Regulation 601-210, Table 9-4 contains guidance on enlistment
option program 9C (Bonus/Army College Fund/Loan Repayment Program).  Table
9-4 provides program processing procedures that require specific counseling
and administrative actions in connection with processing members enlisting
with the LRP incentive.  In addition, Line 7 of Table 9-4 requires the
guidance counselor to verify that the applicant has qualifying loans if
enlisting for the LRP, to advise the applicant if any loan is not eligible,
and to have the applicant acknowledge same in the remarks section of the DD
Form 1966 series.

10.  Title 10, U. S. Code, section 1552, the law which provides for the
Board, states that “The Secretary may pay, from applicable current
appropriations, a
claim for the loss of pay, allowances, compensation, emoluments, or other
pecuniary benefits, or the repayment of a fine or forfeiture, if, as a
result of
correcting a record under this section, the amount is found to be due the
claimant on account of his or another’s service in the Army, Navy, Air
Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard, as the case may be.”

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence of record shows the applicant enlisted for the LRP
incentive.  He had obtained several student loans prior to his entry on
active duty and they were not in default prior to his entry on active duty.
 It appears that one of his loans qualified for repayment under the LRP;
however, the NJCLASS student loans did not meet the requirements for
repayment under the Higher Education Act and the LRP.

2.  The applicant states his recruiter and his MEPS counselor assured him
all his student loans were eligible for repayment.  It is noted that no
entry was made in the remarks section of the applicant's DD Form 1966
reflecting any loan's ineligibility for repayment as required by
regulation.  Both his qualifying loan and unqualified loans totaled
slightly over $19,000.  Considering the total amount of the unqualified
loans, it is reasonable to presume the applicant would have sought
assurance those loans would have been eligible for repayment, also.  Any
reasonable doubt concerning counseling the applicant received from his
recruiter and MEPS counselor on the eligibility of his NJCLASS student
loans should be resolved in the applicant's favor.

3.  In the interest of justice and equity, it would be appropriate to
provide the applicant the full LRP benefits outlined in his enlistment
contract.  The applicant is required to complete 3 years of active duty to
obtain the full benefits of the LRP.  He enlisted in the Regular Army in
October 2003.  The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) will be
requested to establish a debt should he not serve the required active duty.


4.  The applicant’s military records may be corrected to show his
enlistment contract was amended to include the sentence, “If a student loan
is accepted by the officials processing you for enlistment as payable under
the LRP and the government fails to verify that the student loan accepted
actually is eligible under the Higher Education Act of 1965 and such
failure results in nonpayment of the loan by the LRP or the repayment or
default of the loan, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records may
pay the loan, at its sole discretion, in accordance with Title 10, U.S.
Code, section 1552.”  This would allow the Board to invoke that provision
and pay him the amount his lending institutions would have been paid under
the LRP.

BOARD VOTE:

__le____  __jed___  __jrm___  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to
warrant a recommendation for relief.  As a result, the Board recommends
that the applicant's enlistment contract be amended to include the sentence
“If a student loan is accepted by the officials processing you for
enlistment as payable under the LRP and the government fails to verify that
the student loan accepted actually is eligible under the Higher Education
Act of 1965 and such failure results in nonpayment of the loan by the LRP
or the repayment or default of the loan, the Army Board for Correction of
Military Records may pay the loan, at its sole discretion, in accordance
with Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552.”

2.  That as a result of the foregoing correction the Defense Finance and
Accounting Service shall remit payment to the applicant the total amount of
his NJCLASS student loans, in the amount of $19,377.64, to which he is
entitled as a result of this correction and advise him if he does not serve
the required active duty a debt will be established.




                                  ___Lester Echols______
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050015079                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20051117                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |GRANT                                   |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Schneider                           |
|ISSUES         1.       |112.12                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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