RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


	IN THE CASE OF:	 


	BOARD DATE:	  29 April 2008
	DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20080000062 


	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.  




Director



Analyst

      The following members, a quorum, were present:




Chairperson



Member



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 student loan in the amount of $18,431.20 be paid under the terms of the Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP).

2.  The applicant states he was denied repayment of his college loans under the provisions of the U.S. Army Student Loan Repayment Program.  He requests that the college loans be paid as promised in his reenlistment contract.  On  
28 April 2006, he extended his term of enlistment for the student loan repayment program in the Wisconsin Army National Guard.  However, during his mobilization and after serving 7 months of his enlistment contract, he was informed on 13 June 2007 by a representative from the Wisconsin Army National Guard Education Office that his loans did not qualify for repayment.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of a personal statement, ABCMR proceedings dated 23 November 2005 with supporting documents, memorandum dated  
13 June 2007, DA Form 4836 (Oath of Extension of Enlistment) dated 28 April 2006, and an NGB Form 600-7-5-R-E (Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum) dated 28 April 2006 with three summary pages.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant's military personnel record shows he enlisted in the Wisconsin Army National Guard on 9 November 2000 for 8 years.  On 28 April 2006, he entered into an agreement to extend his enlistment contract for an additional
6 years in order to qualify for the SLRP.  His personnel record shows he has two existing loans which total $18,431.20.

2.  A memorandum from the Joint Force Headquarters Wisconsin, Wisconsin Army National Guard dated 13 June 2007, states the applicant had received control numbers for a reenlistment bonus and the SLRP upon reenlistment.  The Oath of Enlistment was executed on 28 April 2006 and the student loan repayment addendum should have been completed and forwarded to the State Incentive Manager for review.

3.  The applicant had contacted the SLRP Manager to ensure that payments were made during his deployment; however, the applicant was informed that the Education Office had never received the promissory notes with his paperwork.  In the interim, it was determined that the American Education Service, is "ALPLN," or an alternative loan and is not eligible for repayment in accordance with policy.  In order words, his loan was not insured or guaranteed under Title IV, Part B or E of the Higher Education Act of 1965.

4.  Evidence of record shows that when the applicant completed Annex S (Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum), Section III (Entitlement & Payments) to the DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document), he acknowledged with his initials in Item 4, that he read and understood the contents of Section III.  The ALPLN loan was not amongst the loans eligible for the Student Loan Repayment program.  This section outlined the type of loans, by names that were eligible for the SLRP.

5.  Section VI, Statement of Understanding, of Annex S, Item 3 states that current Army National Guard member will furnish their unit personnel with all promissory notes upon their reenlistment/extension for forwarding to the Incentive Manager of their State.  A payment will not be authorized if they do not submit the promissory note or letter of disbursement at the time of immediate reenlistment/extension.  Loans acquired after the reenlistment/extension are not eligible for repayment under the Student Loan Repayment Program.

6.  The SLRP is a Department of the Army enlistment option authorized by Title 10 of the United States Code, section 2171 (10 USC 2171), which provides the legal authority for the education loan repayment program for enlisted members on active duty in specified military specialties.  The law states, in pertinent part, that 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.  By law, the Government cannot reimburse a soldier if he or she pays off a student loan.  The Government can only pay the lending institution.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence of record shows that the applicant had obtained two student loans prior to his extension in the ARNG which were not in default.  However, neither of these loans met the requirements for repayment under the Higher Education Act and the SLRP.  



2.  The applicant’s promissory notes were required to accompany his SLRP addendum when the addendum was sent to the State SLRP Manager, and this did not occur until well after a year from the date of his extension.  In addition, the evidence shows that the applicant was informed in Annex S, Section III of his enlistment contract what loans were eligible for the SLRP.  

3.  As such, it is apparent that the applicant did not comply with the terms of his SLRP addendum.  If he had, it is reasonable to presume that he would have been told his loans did not qualify for payment under the SLRP prior to his extension.

4.  While the applicant provides an ABCMR record of proceedings in which a Soldier was paid the amount of his student loans by the ABCMR, the ABCMR is an administrative board.  As such, the ABCMR's decisions are not precedent setting.  Court cases are precedent setting, not administrative board decisions.

5.  Additionally, the case submitted by the applicant has little similarity to his own situation.  The applicant in the case in question was enlisting into the Regular Army for an initial term of service.  The applicant is an Army National Guardsman reenlisting.  As such, the processing procedures differ greatly between the two cases.

6.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must satisfactorily show, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit sufficient evidence that would satisfy this requirement; therefore, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

_____X___  ___X____  __X____  DENY APPLICATION





BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error of 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.




      _________X_____________
                CHAIRPERSON


ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20080000062



2


DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
1901 SOUTH BELL STREET, 2ND FLOOR
ARLINGTON, VA  22202-4508