Key Elements of SuccessSTUDENT VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT TASK FORCE

October 2021

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AcknowledgmentsWe extend gratitude and thanks to the individuals and organizations who participated in the Student Volunteer Engagement Task Force. By contributing to the conversation and sharing their experiences and expertise, they advanced the national discourse related to working with student volunteers to extend the impact of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. Special thanks go to Justin Chu, Prosperity Now staff, for managing and coordinating this project, and to our funder, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, for their unwavering support of the VITA field, and their commitment to ensuring the financial well-being of the most economically challenged youth and young adults in our society.

About Prosperity NowSince 1979, Prosperity Now (formerly CFED) has been a persistent voice championing economic opportunity, innovating outside of and beyond existing systems to build power for all communities. We advance racial and ethnic economic justice by investing in bold new ideas, and we work deeply at both the grassroots and national level to impact the entire ecosystem. By setting goals for our economy and following through with targeted approaches based on need, we are equipped to drive forward and cement big structural solutions. Join Prosperity Now in creating a new, transformed economy that works for all of us. Visit us at www.prosperitynow.org.

About the Taxpayer Opportunity NetworkProsperity Now’s Taxpayer Opportunity Network (TON) connects, strengthens and inspires community tax programs so they can more effectively and efficiently deliver critical tax assistance to low- and moderate-income taxpayers, couple that assistance with complementary financial capability services and advocate for fairer tax policy in the United States. The Network includes more than 8,000 practitioners, stakeholders, and volunteers from over 1,000 VITA organizations, making it the fastest-growing learning and advocacy network for taxpayer assistance practitioners.

Key Elements of SuccessSTUDENT VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT TASK FORCE

REBECCA THOMPSON

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About this ProjectWith the generous support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Taxpayer Opportunity Network has been working to identify and scale strategies to increase the capacity of VITA programs to reach more under-served households. This project specifically focuses on strategies to engage more college students as volunteers with the VITA program, thereby increasing program capacity and the ability to serve more low- and moderate-income (LMI) households. To that end, we convened the Student Volunteer Engagement Task Force, a group of college and university professors and VITA program managers from among our network membership (See Appendix A), to discuss and identify model practices for overcoming challenges and successfully engaging student volunteers and running a campus VITA program.

Project Goals and ProcessThe goal of this project was to increase the number of young adults, ages 18 to 24, who can prepare tax returns and support others in their communities by equipping local programs with helpful tools and resources for engaging student volunteers. We leveraged the experience and expertise of college and university professors and staff to gain an understanding of the most effective strategies and processes for engaging students in the target age group. We convened the Task Force six times during 2021 to discuss the strategies and practices that proved most helpful in engaging student volunteers. Task Force members shared their experiences and described the key elements that were significant contributors to their success.

This resource is the product of the Task Force group discussions and highlights key strategies that prospective campus staff, as well as VITA programs, can employ to successfully engage students from local colleges and universities in their programs.

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Table of Contents

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Introduction

Manage Your ExpectationsHave A Strong Support Network

Utilize The Talent You Have On Campus

Offer A For-Credit Course Or As Part Of A For-Credit Course

Training Is Intensive; Get Help For It!

Focus On The Benefit To The Volunteers Have Clearly-Defined Volunteer Roles

Conclusion

Appendix A

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IntroductionHaving an adequate, steady supply of volunteers is critical to the success of any VITA program. For many years, VITA programs have struggled collectively with recruiting and retaining volunteers. Many VITA programs have turned to local high schools, colleges and universities to recruit and train volunteers for their community VITA programs.

While college and university students can present a valuable volunteer base, working with student populations and running a campus VITA program has its challenges. There are many advantages to running a campus VITA program, including having a ready volunteer base that is easily accessible. For volunteers, the skills and experiences learned through the VITA program are great resume-builders and applicable to life. However, when working with student populations, a high rate of turnover of volunteers should be expected as they matriculate and become employed. Often, students participate in the program for only one year.

Following are seven key elements of successfully engaging student volunteers as identified by the Student Volunteer Engagement Task Force:

1. Manage your expectations: start small, but don’t expect to stay small.

2. Have a strong support network.

3. Utilize the talent you have on campus.

4. Offer the volunteer experience as a for-credit course or as part of a for-credit course.

5. Training is intensive; get help for it!

6. Focus on the volunteers .

7. Have clearly-defined volunteer roles.

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Manage Your ExpectationsStart small but don’t expect to stay small.

First-year VITA sites will almost always start small. As such, it would be unusual for a new VITA site to be inundated with clients or volunteers. Program managers should set a modest goal for the first year for volunteers and client engagement. It is also helpful to manage your expectations based on characteristics of the student population. If the students are not generally civic-minded, or there are no school requirements for community engagement, there may not be significant volunteer interest in the program.

Have A Strong Support NetworkJoin a local VITA Coalition.

Having a strong support network goes a long way towards ensuring the success of a campus VITA program. The support network applies not only to those within the department, or enlisting accounting professors to teach tax law, but should extend throughout the school and into the community. Graduate students and alumni can be a part of the support network by sharing their experiences with new and potential volunteers, by delivering or assisting with volunteer training and by serving as leaders in the VITA program.

It is important to get buy-in or support from peers within the department, such as professors who are well-versed in tax law, to help with student supervision and quality review. Equally important is the support needed from relevant deans, department heads and college or university leadership

Key Resource: IRS Publications

Partner Resource Guide: Publication 4396-A (Rev. 10-2020) (irs.gov)

Site Coordinator’s Handbook: Publication 1084 (Rev. 10-2020) (irs.gov)

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to champion the program. VITA generally is an easy program to “sell” to garner support from peers and campus leadership, as it provides experiential learning, a great benefit to students and the surrounding community. A local VITA program can help to demonstrate the impact the VITA program has in the community, and resources from the Taxpayer Opportunity Network can be helpful in conveying the impact of the VITA program in the state and nationally.

Utilize The Talent You Have On CampusMeet students where they are.

Running a VITA program can be an overwhelming undertaking, even for the most seasoned program directors. It is important to remember that you can’t do it all yourself. Helping people navigate their finances is a valuable skill across many industries. Look for campus partners to help support the program. Potential partners could come from the law school, accounting, personal financial planning or social work schools. Many campus chapters of the Beta Alpha Psi honor organization for financial information students and professionals also either operate VITA sites or support the VITA program by encouraging volunteerism among its members.

Since most campus volunteer recruits will want to gain experience preparing tax returns, it is important to secure as much administrative support as possible to help with the program. One potential resource is leveraging work study students or interns to provide administrative support.

Participating in established campus community events and job fairs can be good for both volunteer recruitment and promoting VITA services. Colleges and schools with community service requirements as well as interns can help to broaden the volunteer base.

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Offer A For-Credit Course Or As Part Of A For-Credit CourseAllow students to earn college credit for VITA training, certification and volunteer time.

Allowing students to train, volunteer and earn credit is a preferred method for engaging student volunteers. Some campus programs have found that offering a three-credit accounting course generates more consistent volunteers throughout the filing season. The training offered in the for-credit course can also be opened to other community volunteers at off-campus tax site locations.

The complexities and challenges associated with offering a for-credit course vary, depending on the school. However, most of the VITA volunteer training curriculum and certification requirements are governed by the IRS. This may be beneficial in developing and vetting the course curriculum.

VITA for-credit course requirements are not limited to accounting students. Other schools that encourage community-based learning may also be good sources of volunteers who earn credit.

Training Is Intensive – Get Help For It!

In addition to learning tax law, VITA volunteers need to learn how to prepare tax returns using the software provided. Professors and staff who are a part of the support network can help by teaching tax law and helping students complete their IRS certification tests. The Prosperity Now VITA-Train is a useful training resource, as are the training materials and resources provided by local VITA partners. Access to training resources and help with training volunteers can also be acquired through partnerships with, and participation in the local VITA coalition.

Returning volunteers can help with training by serving as lead volunteers or as instructors or instructor assistants.

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Focus On The Benefit To The Volunteers

In addition to the benefits to the community, the VITA program offers many benefits for volunteers. VITA volunteers learn a critical, life-long skill and enjoy the camaraderie of working in a VITA site alongside peers to make a positive impact on the lives of LMI families. Highlighting the other tangible benefits of being a VITA volunteer for students can help with recruiting and volunteer satisfaction.

VITA is a wonderful resume-builder for college students, as the VITA experience is a selling point for potential employers. Student VITA volunteers gain experience and cultural competency in interacting with a diverse client base. They also gain valuable interviewing and active listening skills. When the VITA program is offered as an extension of the public health program, it provides good hands-on training to help pre-med students prepare for community interaction. For law students, VITA provides pro-bono hours and helps them fulfill their community outreach requirements.

Have Clearly Defined Volunteer Roles

Volunteers benefit from having clearly-defined roles and responsibilities. Having volunteer position descriptions provides clarity and an understanding of the duties and responsibilities, training and certification requirements, as well as the time commitment associated with each volunteer role.

Many student volunteers will want to prepare returns, as it is the allure of being a VITA volunteer. However, not everyone is a great fit for the VITA tax preparer volunteer role. There are several other volunteer roles needed, such as greeter or intake specialist and quality reviewer, for smooth VITA site operations. Potential volunteers can complete the Prosperity Now Volunteer Skills Survey to identify the VITA volunteer role best suited for them. These volunteer roles can be filled by high school students or other community volunteers.

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ConclusionWhile engaging college and university students as VITA volunteers can be beneficial for both the students and the communities where they live and study, there are associated challenges. Drawing from their experiences, the Student Volunteer Engagement Task Force identified several key factors that have contributed to their success:

1. Manage your expectations: start small, but don’t expect to stay small.

2. Have a strong support network.

3. Utilize the talent you have on campus.

4. Offer the volunteer experience as a for-credit course or as part of a for-credit course.

5. Training is intensive; get help with it!

6. Focus on the volunteers.

7. Have clearly defined volunteer roles.

Taken together, and adapted as needed, these key elements can help to strengthen both campus and community VITA programs by engaging student volunteers, thereby increasing the capacity and extending the reach of the VITA program to more low- to moderate-income households.

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Appendix AStudent Volunteer Engagement Task Force Members:

Name City State Organization

Daniel Leatham Worcester MA Taxpayer Advocate of Massachusetts

Becky Smith Starkville MS Mississippi State

Kristin Topel Baltimore MD Johns Hopkins Medical Institute

Andrew Zumwalt Columbia MO University of Missouri

Professor Bill Anderson Fairfield CT Sacred Heart University

Steven Balsam Philadelphia PA Temple University

Michelle Harati Washington DC Georgetown/LISC

Mike Shipman Cresson PA Mount Aloysius College

Rawlin Tate Atlanta GA IRS

Nora Senyk Washington DC Catholic University

Sasha Hollister Richmond VA University of Richmond

Betty Habershon Largo MD Prince George’s Community College

Victoria Saunders Largo MD Prince George’s Community College

Mathieu Despard St. Louis MO UNC Greensboro

Lucy Nalbandian Northridge CA California State University, Northridge

Rafi Efrat Northridge CA California State University, Northridge

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