Cal Poly accounting seniors helped 377 people with their taxes this year and generated $347,000 in refunds, according to an Orfalea College of Business news release.
The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) clinic began in early February and operated for seven weeks, till the end of winter quarter. Accounting students sign up for VITA as a part of their senior project, and focus on assisting taxpayers who make less than $67,000 a year. VITA started in 1972 and became an annual event in 1992.
Prior to participation in VITA, students must take BUS 320 (Federal Taxation for Individuals) as a prerequisite course.
For the first four weeks of the quarter, VITA students meet on Fridays for three-hour training sessions on the software used to perform tax returns, according to VITA faculty leader Trisha Daughtrey.
Students are required to take an IRS Advanced Exam and earn a certification. According to Daughtrey, students almost always perform well on the exam.
“This is my tenth year,” Daughtrey said. “And only one student in 10 years didn’t practice. We do a lot of practice. We do three practice tax returns in those first four weeks.”
VITA’s main site is located on the third floor of the Business Building (03). However, some students work at two additional sites in Oceano and Santa Maria. Daughtrey said the sites in Oceano and Santa Maria depend heavily on the students.
Cal Poly’s VITA ran through March 16, services in Oceano and Santa Maria continued through April 8.
“I tell my students, ‘Don’t be surprised, when you get there, you’re going to be the professional’,” Daughtrey said.
She added that the employees at the tax assistance clinics in Oceano and Santa Maria are mostly only IRS basic certified, but VITA students all must be IRS advanced certified in order to work with clients.
In addition to technical knowledge, VITA students also learn how to communicate tactfully and respectfully with clients, especially when revealing to clients that they owe more money than they may be aware of. Daughtrey mentioned how many VITA clients don’t know that California imposes a penalty for not having health insurance and how some VITA student clients are not aware that if their scholarship is greater than their tuition, the rest becomes taxable income.
“The students learn to be professional and respectful of clients, particularly regarding individual finances, which is a sensitive topic,” business administration student and VITA spokesperson Ryan Hudson said in the release.
Publicity is one of the lesser-known aspects of VITA. Students can either spend all seven Saturdays working at the clinic, or they can take the day off and spread the word.
“I tell them I want the town raining flyers,” Daughtrey said. “I split the town into grids. I’ll have three students responsible for Foothill and California, three students responsible for downtown, three students responsible for Los Osos Valley Road and Madonna.”
At the end of VITA, students write a reflection paper. They also keep a journal during the seven-week period.
“I can really get a feel for how they felt about the program,” Daughtrey said. “How they feel about giving back to the community exposes students to a demographic they probably aren’t involved with.”
Daughtrey and her partner, faculty member Steven Danowitz, have discussed the possibility of making next year’s VITA a hybrid program in which clients will hand their paperwork to students and the client can leave, instead of having to sit there for hours as some clients have children.
For more information about VITA, visit their website.