Public invited to Financial Fair this week at Williamson College

The public is invited to a Financial Fair at the Williamson College of Business Administration 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 7.

At the event, which is part of the college’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, more than 10 partners from the Mahoning Valley Financial Stability Partnership will provide short financial education seminars related to borrowing money and financial literacy. The goal of the event is to assist families in making responsible fiscal decisions with not only their tax return money but for their financial future.

The Williamson College of Business Administration is located on 221 N. Hazel Street between Rayen Avenue and Wood Street on the YSU campus.

The VITA program, in operation at YSU for more than 20 years, provides free tax return preparation and filing by trained YSU business students and professional volunteers.

The program will complete about 500 returns this tax season. Due to the demand, there are no remaining appointments available for VITA tax preparation by April 7.

The program out of the YSU Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance offers hands-on experience to business students who are required to go through an intensive training program to ensure they are up to date on all of the IRS requirements and tax laws. They spend four Saturdays in training sessions for about 30 hours total. In addition, each student and volunteer spends 20 to 30 hours studying for the IRS certifications required to volunteer.

“Being a VITA volunteer has provided me with experience that a normal lecture class could not provide,” said Kyla Williams, junior accounting major from Youngstown. “I have gained valuable knowledge that will give me an advantage when starting my career.”