Students volunteer services at tax clinic

The business department will host tax clinics again at the Brainerd Recreational Center for students and their families in low income tax brackets, Ann Wilkins, assistant professor of accounting, said.Melanie McCoskey, professor of accounting, is the coordinator of the tax clinics.

The services of the tax clinics are available to community members and students whose incomes are $40,000 or less.

Eight stations will be available from Jan. 24 through Feb. 23. The hours of operation are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Last year, 80 to 100 students prepared 339 tax returns worth approximately $600,000, Wilkins said.

Along with students, this year Wilkins is volunteering for the tax clinic.

"This is why I like to volunteer, because it helps the students get hands-on experience," Wilkins said.

Wilkins said volunteers donate over 630 hours of volunteer time. This includes the 200 volunteer hours McCoskey spends coordinating the program.

While at the tax clinic, community members will receive a free tax service and e-filing. E-filing enables the person filing taxes to get their refunds back more quickly than if done on paper. Typically refunds are received in one to two weeks, Wilkins said.

"Any student can volunteer," Wilkins said, "but the majority of the students are accounting majors."

To qualify for volunteering at the tax clinic the student must pass an Internal Revenue Service test called the Vita Certification Test.

"It's a pretty hard test, and that's why it's generally for accounting majors," Wilkins said.

Juanita Eitzen, a Chattanooga senior said, "Some of the IRS test questions were tricky, and it could have been worded better."

Eitzen said she volunteered for two days during the tax clinic's event.

"It is a good experience for me to meet new people and get experience with the IRS system," Eitzen said.

"Between studying and taking the test is about 16 to 25 hours and the student must score an 80 or above to pass," Wilkins said.

This is not a UTC rule but an IRS rule in order for students to qualify.

"You don't have to be an accounting major to volunteer," Audrey Glor, a junior from Hendersonville, Tenn., said.

"I am an anthropology major and I was able to do everything," she said.

During the tax clinic each student will sit at a station with a client and their tax information. The student then inputs the client's information into the computerized IRS software and develops a return.

The student then sends the return to the department of business where it is revised.

"This is such a good skill to have for you to do your own tax returns, and those of your friends and family," Wilkins said.

Glor said the experience was educational because it simplified the process of filing taxes.

Glor said she participated in the tax clinic her freshman year and plans to volunteer this year.

"I am doing it again because it was really fulfilling and fun because you get to meet a bunch of different people and talk to them while you are filling out forms," Glor said.

"You get to see another walk of life and that is really good because a lot of college kids are privileged. They get to see all these people who live in low-income households and see that it is not the end of the world," Glor said.

For more information about the business department's volunteer tax clinic contact Melanie McCoskey at melanie-mccorsky@utc.edu.