VITA Students Provide Free Tax Assistance

April 2, 2018

The deadline to file taxes is April 17 and more than 50 Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) students are helping New Yorkers make the deadline by providing free assistance in preparing their 2017 tax returns as part of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program

Since January, the volunteers have been working at both Food Bank for New York City as well as Urban Upbound locations scattered throughout the city. This is the first year, BMCC’s VITA program has partnered with Urban Upbound.  

In order to volunteer, the students must successfully complete the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) certification exam. The college offers VITA training workshops during winter break to prepare for the test.  BMCC is the only community college in New York City that offers VITA training workshops.

“This kind of volunteer experience is beneficial because the students are meeting a very vital need and at the same time, gaining invaluable professional tax preparation experience,” said Accounting Professor Angela Jervis, who along with Accounting Professor Joel Barker, oversees the VITA program. 

After one year of volunteer work preparing tax returns at the advanced level, students are eligible to apply for paid employment opportunities preparing tax returns. The program is open to all academic majors, not just students from the accounting department. 

Jervis says the experience students gain not only enhances future employment opportunities, it strengthens critical thinking and communication skills.“Everyone is a potential taxpayer and needs to file a tax return each year,” Jervis said, “so this is useful knowledge for personal, family and friend’s needs.”

For more information, call the BMCC Accounting Department at (212) 220-8185.

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • BMCC VITA program partners with Urban Upbound
  • IRS-trained student volunteers assist at locations throughout the city
  • Program offers students experience in tax preparation

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