NIU students majoring in law or accounting who want hands-on experience in assisting people with thier taxes can volunteer for the Voluntary Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.

Phil Schekenfelder, vice president of Beta Alpha Psi honorary business fraternity, said the NIU accoutngin department and the College of Law are sponsoring the program. The service offers free tax assistance to people who can’t afford a paid service.

Volunteers are neede to help fill out 10-40, 10-40 A, 10-40 EZ, and 10-40 NR tax forms.

“The program gives good experience for people interested in this area of business,” Schenkenfelder said. “It’s also a good feeling to be providing this type of service to people who otherwise are not able to get it.”

Volunteers must be accounting majors who are involved in upper-class work or law students with previous tax experience.

Schenkenfelder said volunteers will help solve small problems people might face when filling out their tax forms.

“The forms are easy ones to do,” he said.

VITA will run from Feb. 8 to March 4 at NIU in various locations.

“We will be hitting all the residence halls at some point, as well as the (Holmes) Student Center, the DeKalb library and some retirement plazas,” Schenkenfelder said.

Students interested in volunteering are required by the IRS to attend an instructional seminar from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday in Wirtz Hall 316.