Emily Prestridge
A University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) student helped Huntsville residents file their taxes this spring through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.
Sarah Prestridge worked in the VITA program from January to March taking on different responsibilities as she helped many submit their taxes. Prestridge did not simply file taxes, she counseled people so they could make the best choices while completing their taxes. She guided clients through the full tax filing process which included making sure they understood information about their returns, inputting their own information into the system, answering questions, and more. Additionally, Prestridge was an “advanced volunteer” which allowed her to oversee fellow volunteers; she answered questions they had and conducted quality reviews of their work to ensure the tax filing process was successful with each client.
The VITA program provided free tax filing aid to individuals earning less than $60,000 per year, and when asked about the demographics of the clients Prestridge served, she explained that they were immensely diverse. “I helped out people as young as 15 who had their first job and they were filing, and then I helped people as old as 87 … it was a lot of families, and a lot of young single people, a lot of retired people, it was a mix,” she said. Because of the diverse clients she attended, her workload also varied; she typically completed five tax returns and quality reviewed another five in a single day, but depending on who came in, sometimes she completed approximately ten tax returns in a day.
Prestridge discovered the VITA program through Mona Foroughi, the Career and Internship Advisor for the College of Business. Foroughi sent Prestridge information about interning for the program, she applied and was accepted. Prestridge also commented that at the time, she had recently taken a tax class, so she was interested in applying her new knowledge at a job. Speaking about the relevance of the internship, Prestridge mentioned “It was cool that it matched the curriculum.”
Another positive aspect of Prestridge’s work is that it helped many people in Huntsville, which made her efforts more meaningful. “I know taxes are really scary for a lot of people, and it’s lower income families just so that they had the personal time to come in and ask any questions. It was nice to see that it was in Huntsville … you’re actually helping people that you’re gonna see in your community and it’s making a difference … it’s very community-driven,” she explained.
Prestridge is studying accounting and hopes to graduate in the winter of 2022. She wants to work after graduating to see what sector in accounting she would like the most, but is considering pursuing a master’s degree after spending some time in the workforce. She commented, “If I get my master’s, I want to take at least a year off just to give myself a break and get some field experience to know which way I wanna go … see if I want to stay with taxes or go more into private or go into consulting. There’s a lot of options.”
