How GW Student Volunteers Are Making a Difference During Tax Season

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There are few moments more rewarding as a student than being able to take what you are learning in the classroom and apply it to make a meaningful difference in someone else's life.

For more than a decade, theGeorge Washington University Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program has been creating those moments for students as they guide D.C. residents and members of the GW community through the often stressful process of filing their taxes.

And now, as the April 15 filing deadline approaches, over a hundred community members served by the clinic-from students filing taxes for the first time to working families receiving larger refunds-can rest easy knowing it's been taken care of.

Operating out of the Crain Center on the first floor of Duquès Hall under the leadership of Accountancy Professor Bill Stromsem, the GW tax clinic was founded with the mission of providing free tax assistance for people navigating a system that can often feel overwhelming.

Many people face hurdles while filing their taxes, starting with trying to make sense of a complicated tax code.

"And unfortunately, some of the provisions that lower-income taxpayers have to deal with are some of the most complex provisions of the tax law," Stromsem said. "The earned income credit is very, very complex, and it's highly audited. So, it's a real problem for someone who doesn't know the ropes."

The clinic first started in 2015 as a branch of Community Tax Aid, one of the region's largest low-income tax support organizations, before eventually becoming a university-run program.

And years later, hundreds of people have benefited from this service.

There's a lot of joy in the room, Stromsem said, when clients learn what their refund will be after student preparers identify all the tax credits they qualify for.

"There was one time the student turned the computer around and said to the client, 'This is going to be your refund,' and I saw the guy get up and start dancing," Stromsem said.

For many people, especially families working within tight budgets, learning how to make full use of the credits available to them can make a real difference in their lives.

One family shared that their larger refund would give them enough for a down payment on a home, creating the possibility of having all their children under one roof.

It's important work the students are doing, Stromsem said.

"This is person-to-person, hands-on, face-to-face. You're talking to someone, you're learning about them to prepare the return," Stormsem said. "And students are using their classroom skills to help the people in their community."

It's the impactful nature of the work that keeps students like Maggie Wu, a third year GW Lawstudent, coming back year after year. She says the experience is just as rewarding for the students behind the laptops as it is for the clients sitting across from them.

"Our clients are working families who may very well be leaving money on the table," said Wu. "Not because they did anything wrong, but because navigating the tax code is genuinely hard and professional help is expensive."

She started as a volunteer tax preparer her first year and now serves as a student leader alongside Jorge Sanchez, a junior studying accountancy, overseeing operations and guiding new volunteers through the process.

The volunteers at VITA are a mix of GW Law and School of Businessgraduate and undergraduate students. Each year, about 50 students sign up, willing to volunteer their time on Saturdays and Sundays.

"What I learned from the clinic was something that I just couldn't have gotten out of a classroom or a tax case book," Wu said. "Tax law can feel abstract, but sitting across from someone with a filing deadline, real W-2s and 1099s in front of you, that's completely different from just learning about ordinary income in theory. This is what tax looks like in real life."

Wu said the tax code can be confusing, and many people don't even realize there are credits they may qualify for that could mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars back. Students, for example, could be eligible for education benefits such as the Lifetime Learning Credit for graduate students or the American Opportunity Tax Credit for undergraduates, as well as local credits available to some D.C. renters.

Each client's financial situation looks a little different, so the student volunteers are constantly challenged to work through new scenarios, adapt their classroom knowledge and problem solve in real time.

Before volunteering, students undergo training and must become certified through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The process includes in-person and online instruction, followed by a series of exams covering ethics, intake and quality review procedures and tax return preparation.

"So much of the impact that we're able to have is due to all the volunteers who come in on the weekend and I am just genuinely proud of how many people show up," Wu said. "I mean, law school schedules are not forgiving. And these students are carving out time for us anyway. And that does say something about the community that we're in and that we are trying to serve."

Students interested in volunteering or learning more about VITA can visit them on Instagram @gw.vita.