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Epifania Amoo-Adare (front), graduate student in education, gets help with her taxes from fourth-

Gathering in a small room on the third floor of Ackerman Union, student volunteers willingly sacrifice basking in the sun to help fellow students and community members file their taxes.

Students at UCLA can rely on the student-coordinated Volunteer Income Tax Assistant Organization on campus while tackling their tax returns.

VITA, a national effort operated in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service and sponsored on campus by the UCLA Anderson School of Management’s undergraduate Minor in Accounting program, provides free assistance in filing federal and state tax returns to UCLA students and community members.

Training most of winter quarter with IRS professionals, approximately 200 now-IRS certified student volunteers will be available to provide tax services to fellow students and the homeless between now and April 15, when taxes are officially due.

Growing dramatically in the number of student volunteers and tax returns completed, VITA at UCLA hopes to exceed over 1,000 tax returns this year, said Mike Hsu, a third-year business and economics student who is also president of the program.

In the past, UCLA’s VITA placed a strong emphasis on providing services to minorities and low-income individuals, but this year the organization is shifting its emphasis to UCLA students, though it will continue to help out the homeless as well.

Utilizing the service may be very beneficial to those unaware of certain ways in which money can be saved, said Hsu, referring to educational credits that help independent students who are paying tuition save money.

“We can try to help students minimize tax liability – that we will try our best to do,” Hsu said.

Taking an average of 15 minutes for each tax return, students simply go to Ackerman 3517 with their W2, 1098, 1099 forms and all other tax-related documents, and VITA volunteers provide all other needed forms.

UCLA VITA volunteers will also be available at People Assisting the Homeless, a homeless site in Los Angeles.

Unlike most tax service companies, VITA is free; however, it cannot assist international students or individuals with incomes over $35,000.

Those in charge say mistakes, especially feared when dealing with the IRS, should not concern students seeking this student-run service.

“Should we make a mistake, the taxpayer is not personally liable for the penalties,” Hsu said, explaining that the tax forms indicate that the return was prepared by a VITA volunteer.

Hsu also said that so far, the organization has been doing pretty well on keeping mistakes to a minimum.

All students enrolled in UCLA, regardless of major, are eligible to sign up for the program and can become a VITA volunteer after completing four out of eight training sessions and passing a qualifying exam. No experience is necessary.

“Most people come here (to sign up for the organization) because they want to help the community and are interested in how taxes work,” Hsu said. “One of our goals is to help them and help them learn more about the tax system.”

Student volunteers are very pleased with the organization and its services to the volunteers.

“It is a good volunteer opportunity and good for resume building – it’s good for others and it’s good for me,” said Kiersten Fletcher, a second-year business and economics student.

Praising the program for being both “personally and professionally” beneficial, Fletcher said something the organization should strive for next time is to make the training sessions more interesting.

Equally pleased are the individuals who are utilizing the service, providing nothing short of positive feedback.

Erin Marnocha, a graduate student in ecology and evolutionary biology, has used the service twice and said she plans to use it again in the future.

“They’ve been good. They try very hard and are very dedicated to what they are doing,” Marnocha said, adding that it is worthwhile.

First-time user Theresa Hastert, a public affairs graduate student, agreed with its convenience.

“They had my headaches for me,” Hastert said.

VITA will be in Ackerman Union 3517 from April 6 to April 15 (excluding weekends) from 12 to 6 p.m. and at People Assisting the Homeless at 2346 Cotner Ave. on April 6, 11 and 13 from 7 to 10 p.m.