If you had a choice between recoupment and enlistment?

GOJIRA

Pima
Kinnem
mgguy
bjc

GOJIRA

I have been following this thread; Gojira and I have PM'd a few times regarding it. I add my name to support her, her son, and her family.
 
GOJIRA

Pima
Kinnem
mgguy
bjc
Dunninla

GOJIRA

Add one more name in support of an overturn on appeal.
 
GOJIRA

Pima
Kinnem
mgguy
bjc
Dunninla
cb7893

GOJIRA

Add one more name in support of an overturn on appeal.

I'm sorry I didn't see this earlier
 
I'm not sure I understand the list thing, but thanks for sharing your story. I'll keep you guys in my prayers.
 
Update on disenrollment for NROTC

Several months ago, I posted some information about my son. His unit was pursuing disenrollment for him.

In November he was given his orders for reporting after graduation in December, he was measured for his commissioning uniforms and tape measured.

Unfortunately, he missed the mark by a few pounds and was out of compliance.

He was disenrolled for the weight. I honestly think they were looking for a reason previous to the weight issue.

We found out that his appeal was denied. He now owes the Navy $150,000.

He was not given an option to enlist - according to his unit, the Secretary of the Navy was asking for full recoupment of anyone who was facing disenrollment.

Thanks to everybody for your support, kind words and advice. It's pretty terrible for him - the dream is over.

I do wish everybody here the best of luck as they pursue their dreams of serving in the military.
 
Several months ago, I posted some information about my son. His unit was pursuing disenrollment for him.

In November he was given his orders for reporting after graduation in December, he was measured for his commissioning uniforms and tape measured.

Unfortunately, he missed the mark by a few pounds and was out of compliance.

He was disenrolled for the weight. I honestly think they were looking for a reason previous to the weight issue.

We found out that his appeal was denied. He now owes the Navy $150,000.

He was not given an option to enlist - according to his unit, the Secretary of the Navy was asking for full recoupment of anyone who was facing disenrollment.

Thanks to everybody for your support, kind words and advice. It's pretty terrible for him - the dream is over.

I do wish everybody here the best of luck as they pursue their dreams of serving in the military.

I am sincerely sorry for your son's situation.

I still can't believe the Navy would not give him the opportunity to lose the weight, since it was such a small amount, and then commission with the class in the spring. If anything can be classified as unfair, this would top the list.

If the Navy was looking for a reason to drop a cadet one would think they would have done it sooner. To wait until a couple weeks before commissioning to raise the issue and then leave a cadet with a staggering amount of money to repay is more then terrible.

My son's AROTC battalion requires all cadets be weighed and taped at every APFT, this gives the cadets plenty of time to make any needed adjustments.

I can only see this as a failure of the NROTC command at the school in not monitoring their cadets so that this does not happen. The command sees these cadets almost every day, to just wait until the last possible date to do a weight test and then drop the cadet is almost unthinkable. If your son was within all requirements set by the Navy and the weight was the only issue, to me the command failed in their leadership and guidance they should be giving every cadet.

Is there a chance your son can apply for OCS, or whatever the Navy calls it, if accepted then apply for SLRP (Student Loan Repayment Plan), it was just a thought.

I wish your son the best of luck, this is a terrible burden to have been thrust on him by the Navy when it seems with good leadership, the NROTC command could have helped him and made sure he met the requirements.
 
Several months ago, I posted some information about my son. His unit was pursuing disenrollment for him.

In November he was given his orders for reporting after graduation in December, he was measured for his commissioning uniforms and tape measured.

Unfortunately, he missed the mark by a few pounds and was out of compliance.

He was disenrolled for the weight. I honestly think they were looking for a reason previous to the weight issue.

We found out that his appeal was denied. He now owes the Navy $150,000.

He was not given an option to enlist - according to his unit, the Secretary of the Navy was asking for full recoupment of anyone who was facing disenrollment.

Thanks to everybody for your support, kind words and advice. It's pretty terrible for him - the dream is over.

I do wish everybody here the best of luck as they pursue their dreams of serving in the military.


I am so truly sorry for your son. From your previous posts I know he is an exceptional son and young man. I wish him the best of luck for the future. Remind him that there are many things he can achieve in this world. There are many other dreams. I know he will do well. I also repeat from one of my previous posts, he has an exceptional mother.
 
Gojira,
I echo NorwichDad's thoughts. I wish your son well in all his endeavers, I am sure he will bounce back just fine. Your family is in our prayers.
 
I am so sorry the appeal didn't work out. I agree with jcleppe that this is a failure in the units leadership. You and your son will be in my prayers.
 
AFROTC Disenrollment ... Apparently Happens Frequently

My DD was awarded an AFROTC scholarship for next year; she's seen herself in the Air Force (and as an engineer) ever since I can remember and has been working hard to get herself there.

I was very excited for her when the scholarship was awarded but I am now having concerns about what I have read on this board and to that end we visited two Canadian schools that she has been admitted to (huge tuition break for Canadians, she's a dual citizen).

I met a parent at one of the schools who was touring with her DS. Her older son was an AFROTC cadet at a Virginia school (OOS tuition for him) who was disenrolled and has been in limbo since last September regarding recoupment or repayment; he graduates in just a few weeks. He was approved for a 5th year in an engineering program (on his nickel) and then disenrolled a few months later. She gave me details of game playing by the cadre -- very sad.

Her take is that last minute disenrollment happens much more frequently than you'd think (gave other examples of disenrolled cadets) and to stay far away from anything ROTC related.
 
If my son had to do it all over again, he still would have done ROTC. His desire was to be a leader and serve our country. However, he would have gone to the in-state, highly regarded engineering program instead of the private school. His debt would have been less half of what it now is. Definitely regretting the more expensive choice.

There were multiple reasons why he chose the private school - that's where the battalion was located, chance to graduate in 4.5 years with engineering more likely in a private school, opportunities for training, etc.

If he had to do it all over again knowing what we know now, he also would have probably chosen an easier major. In his unit, grades are king. Even though he was well above stated GPA standards for his unit, his grades weren't what the CO wanted. Understandable, but comparing the GPA of a less rigorous major to a more rigorous major isn't exactly fair when it comes to commissioning.

I also urge you to read the contract. We never did. He was an adult at that time when he signed the full contract in sophomore year. If we had, we would have seen that disenrollment was a possibility, especially considering that it is largely left up to the whim of the command.

In his unit, there was disorganization, lost paperwork and mixed up files with another midshipman with a similar name, PT reports that were completed and signed months after the fact as a routine. I figured this was simply the military and that's how it worked, so I didn't think much of it. In hindsight, it was a clue about how THIS unit worked.

If your child wants to pursue this scholarship - congratulations, by the way! - then make sure she truly understands to be the best she can be and to not ease up until those stripes are pinned. Don't think of the standards as the minimum, but achieve the best she can with grades, performance and yes, kissing up to the command. Never underestimate the last part. It is what separated him from his fellow MIDM friends that are now proudly serving their country - and they would be the first to admit that, too. ;)
 
Grades are King

Gojira, the mother of the disenrolled Virginia cadet said that his command wanted him to change majors to something easier than engineering midway through the program. To them a lesser degree with higher grades was more important then getting the engineering degree (interesting considering AF awards the majority of scholarships to STEM majors). His command should have let him know a few years ago that he would not be commissioning through them so he could have cut his losses at that point.
 
I am also very sorry that the appeal did not work out for Gojira's son. From a disenrollment persective I've always been a bit concerned about ROTC scholarships to private schools. My reasoning is that there seems to be a "list price" and "net price" for private tuition. The list price might be $45,000 per year but that number will often come down if the school wants a student. I know for my alma mater the $45,000 list price could be reduced by $10,000-$20,000 with various merit scholarships. ROTC seems to pay the list tuition price (a good deal for the private school) but if there is a disenrollment the student ends up owing the list price for total tuition when they could have gone to the same school for a lower net price. This seems to be much less of an issue with state schools.
 
I have stressed this before, and will stress it again, like gojira did.

The devil is in the details when you sign not only the scholarship paperwork, but the contracting paperwork.

Unfortunately many people are so excited for the "free" money they never read the fine print. It is a yeah, yeah, yeah, right, where do I sign philosophy.

It is, however, a legally binding contract with caveats just like your car loan or your mortgage.

gojira knows my heart is with her and her family at this time. Honestly, I think all of us in this economy felt our heart drop reading her post. I think most if not all had in our mind the question where would we come up with 150K if it was our family?

You have to be realistic. We all talk about having a Plan B for college if the scholarship doesn't happen, but we stop talking about Plan B once they contract.
 
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