By VANESSA LANGDON
News Editor
Saint Rose students are lending a helping hand this tax season as they work with the VITA (volunteer income tax assistance) program.
The program, while national, has cropped up near Saint Rose – at the Catholic Charities building at 40 N. Main St. The program started in 1971 and came to the Capital Region 15 years ago, according to Andrew Kochian, a co-site coordinator for the Main Street location. Kochian, a Saint Rose alumnus, got his start volunteering with the program while attending the College.
“It definitely helped me become much better with tax law and get some outreach in the community and really help my neighbors,” Kochian said.
Since graduating in 2014, he has continued to work with the program and has helped to grow its outreach. Last year the assistance program helped low income individuals save nearly $3.3 million in fees they would have had to otherwise pay to get their taxes completed.
Those fees are eliminated thanks to the hardworking volunteers. Saint Rose currently has around five students who volunteer with the program. The program uses two types of volunteers – tax preparers and greeters. The two opportunities make it possible for everyone to be involved if they wish, said Kochian.
“Greeters, they are just as important and help the place stay organized,” he said. “Saint Rose people are mostly tax preparers but we have one or two greeters.”
All volunteers are required to take an ethics test and then the tax preparers also have to pass a tax test to either be certified in basic tax law or advanced tax law. Kochian hosts classes to teach volunteers the tax law they need to know to pass the 30 to 40-question test.
Connor Schafer, a junior at the College, has been with the program for just one year but has been working in tax law for years.
“My first-ever job was at an accounting firm, Gilman Ciocia, and one of the main focus areas of my office was tax,” he said. “I started there when I was 15 as an office assistant, and I’ve been intrigued by the intricacies of tax ever since.”
Much like Kochian, Schafer was drawn to the program by the possibility of using accounting to aid those in need.
“VITA gives the chance for you to get hands-on, practical experience, while also helping out in a meaningful way,” Schafer said.
When asked about the benefits of the program Schafer had a two-fold answer: his own gains and those of the clients.
“I get a deep sense of personal satisfaction and self-fulfillment from helping out our clients,” said Schafer. “And I get that by doing something that I love, as odd as loving taxes may be.”
The benefits to the clients are even greater – their returns can amount to thousands of dollars, according to Schafer.
“Lots of people get freaked out by taxes and get real worked up about having to file,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to help get people through the process, especially the community we serve, who generally wouldn’t have the financial means to use a paid preparer.”
While Schafer volunteers with the program solely to give back to the community, there are opportunities for students to volunteer as part of a one-credit class or through a three-credit internship. Gretchen Guenther, associate professor of accounting, runs both the class and internships.
There are currently four students interning with the program – the internship students work at a downtown VITA site to ensure that they have enough time to complete their required 120 hours. The internships are only available to accounting majors, but the one-credit class is open to all Saint Rose students.
The class meets twice, once in the beginning of the semester and once at the end. Their first meeting sets up their schedules and then at the end they each share their experiences.
Last year the 13 Saint Rose student volunteers worked 544 hours for the program. Guenther expects this year’s volunteers to surpass that number. She also hopes to get more students from outside the business department involved with the program – a goal she said she hasn’t been pushing as hard as she would like.
The greeter position, she believes, would be great experience for students majoring in social work or psychology to get more hands-on experience with members of the community. Any students interested in more information are encouraged to email Guenther at guentheg@strose.edu.
The tax services are open to all who make $54,000 or less, which equates to all Saint Rose students and most faculty, according to Guenther. The program does take walk-in appointments at some sites, but appointments are required at the Catholic Charities site.
Regardless of the site program, staff recommend appointments to avoid long lines. Appointments can be made by dialing 2-1-1 on a cell phone. The Catholic Charities site is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and takes about 35 clients a night.
“It’s just a great program,” said Guenther. “It helps the community and gives students some perspective.”
