Senior accounting majors at Ithaca College are volunteering to help low-income taxpayers through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program.

The VITA program, which runs until March 31, assists low-income staff members and the international students on campus and senior citizens at Longview with their tax returns.

Alan Cohen, associate professor of accounting and director of VITA, said there are 11,000 VITA sites across the country.

“[Last year] we assisted about 120 international students and about 100 low-income staff members here,” Cohen said. “At the [Alternatives Federal] Credit Union their numbers were about 800 when they started five years ago, and now they are at 1,500 [tax returns].”

Cohen started the VITA program 13 years ago. Currently there are 21 student volunteers in the VITA program.

Meredith Humphrey, who is earning a masters in business administration, worked in the program last spring.

“Typically the senior accounting majors have to take a class in the spring and as part of that they work at the VITA program on campus and at the credit union downtown,” Humphrey said.

In order to qualify, a single taxpayer must have an income limit of $30,000 and a limit of $49,000 for a taxpayer with a spouse or child, according to the AFCU Web site. For a college employee the income limitations are $35,000 for a single payer, $45,000 if a head of household and $70,000 if married.

As of Monday, 30 appointments have been made, Cohen said.  

Tim Carey, another student in the MBA program, volunteered for the VITA program last spring and is volunteering again this year.

“[The VITA program] helps you share your knowledge with the community and give back in a way and do a service for people and help them out to get them the full refund they deserve to get,” Carey said.

To make an appointment, contact VITA at 247-3661 or vita@ithaca.edu.