Students Learn a Very Taxing Service

By milliganstampede | January 24, 2012 at 8:19 pm | No comments | COMMUNITY, STUDENT LIFE

Photo Credit: Sydney Franklin

BY Sydney Franklin

Milligan students train to serve the Johnson City area by providing free tax returns through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program.

Business Administration 320 students are learning the necessary skills required to become licensed in tax preparation. Dr. Harold Branstrator teaches the course in three Saturday training sessions.

After completing the course and passing four online exams given by the Internal Revenue Service, students will spend 10 weeks in the community providing free assistance to local taxpayers.

“This is a great outreach and mission,” said Branstrator in an interview last week. “Not only that, but students are requiring a professional skill and using that skill to help others for free.”

Three students from last year’s program returned to volunteer with the project. Not all volunteers this year are interested in accounting or financing.

“I’m not good at all this yet, but I will be,” said public relations major Austin Ellis during the second training session. “Dr. Branstrator rocks and I want to be able to do tax returns for myself when I get out of college.”

Any Milligan student or faculty member can participate in this course and receive credit based on their hours of service. “Anybody who wants to learn, I can train them,” said Branstrator.

Professor of Chemistry Dr. Diane Junker is even training for assist in the program. “I like math, numbers and people,” she said. “I just wanted to help.

In its fourth year at Milligan, the VITA program has the most volunteers in its history with 14 students in the course.

This year Milligan received a $13,000 grant from the IRS to put this project into action. Branstrator expects his students to complete about 500 tax returns, nine times the amount when the program started.

Last year, 300 taxpayers received assistance. Milligan students completed $75,000 worth of returns in addition to giving away about $500,000 in refunds.

For maximum impact, students will be located in seven low-income areas during the weeks of Jan. 30 to April 16 excluding spring break.

“Everyone says people who come to us are so appreciative, “ said management and legal studies major Sam Bernard.

Branstrator will monitor each site to double-check returns as they are completed. Students are prohibited from disclosing anything as result of an audit.

The last training session will be Saturday, Jan. 28.

For a complete list of site operating hours, please view the chart below.