Résumé
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs are consistent with the mission of social work; indeed the very first line in the preamble of the National Association of Social Workers code of ethics reads as follows: “The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and help meet the basic human needs of all people, with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty.” However, social workers and students have only been recently been actively engaged in delivering VITA services, despite the fact that such services help low-income workers access the Earned Income Tax Credit, which is one of the largest anti-poverty policies in the United States funneling more than $60 billion back to low-income taxpayers each year. Launched in 2020, and now entering its third year of operation, the Institute for Nonprofit Organizations VITA Program has engaged more than 25 MSW and MA in Nonprofit Management and Leadership program students in the delivery of VITA services while also working toward the development of comprehensive assessments of clients’ financial needs beyond tax preparation such as job training, eviction prevention, student financial aid, and other related issues.\ While these benefits accrue to VITA clients, we also have documented the value of the program for the students themselves in that they have gained knowledge regarding the impact of VITA on the financial well-being of individuals and families as well as how the influx of federal tax refund dollars affects the local economy.\ Initially, students have questioned how tax preparation is relevant to their social work education however by the end of each tax season, they report a heightened awareness of and appreciation for the interconnectedness of the VITA program to the broader issue of poverty.\ \ \
Mots clés (séparés par des virgules)
poverty, tax refunds, financial well-being, interdisciplinary practice, racial minority communities