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MVHS students participate in work-based learning tax preparation activity

Two students working on taxes.
MVHS students participate in work-based learning tax preparation activity

Students at Mount Vernon High School are participating in a work-based learning activity to learn how to file other people's and their own taxes. Students met for Voluntary Income Tax Assistance training on Thursday, February 8, 2024.  

Teacher helping student.

Representatives from the Westchester County Mount Vernon Career Center and the Mount Vernon Youth Bureau are training students and providing a wage of $16 per hour for their service.  

“Basically, I’m learning a crucial skill that I can use in my life. I’m very interested in pursuing actuary and accounting programs in college, so this is really helpful for me to pursue that dream,” said Adriano Henry, senior at Mount Vernon High School. “It makes it easier for me, especially having something I can put on my resume. I’ve learned all around how to check each individual's taxes. I like the fact that we’re given an opportunity to have something like this and learn a fundamental skill that can help us later in life.” 

Students will assist community members with tax preparation for the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) VITA service. Their first work session will be at the Westchester County Mount Vernon Career Center on Saturday, February 17. 

Teacher working with student

“The students will be ‘employed’ during tax season to assist the community with their taxes,” said Jaime Larmon, work-based learning coordinator at MVHS. “One of the students, Adriano Henry, wants to study to become a CPA, so this is a perfect example of how work-based learning can assist in a student's career goals.” 

All the students in the program have already been certified in ethics and intake interview questions. Four of the students already passed the basic tax preparation certification.  

“We are hoping to give them experience working and open their minds to preparing taxes and learning financial literacy,” said Mary Skirchak, an accountant at the Westchester-Putnam Workforce Development Board. “It will give them experience in customer service, computers, taxes and how some tax laws work.” 

Two students working on taxes.
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