Army program gives poor-performing recruits a second chance

FORT JACKSON, S.C. — Chaz Andrews has wanted to join the Army since he was 19, but he has failed the service’s academic test more than 10 times over the past decade. Now, at age 29, Andrews thinks he has a real shot to pass, thanks to a new Army program that gives lower-performing recruits up to 90 days of academic or fitness instruction to help them meet military standards. “I didn’t want to give up on it,” he said during a recent break in his classroom schedule at Fort Jackson, where he is one of more than 300 recruits who have been allowed to enlist in the new Army prep course. And every three weeks they can move into basic training if they successfully pass the military’s academic test — which is called the Armed Services Voluntary Aptitude Battery — or if they meet the physical standards.