Berry College students will be providing free tax aid primarily designed for low to moderate-income citizens in the Rome area beginning Friday, Feb. 8.

The free aid will be offered Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Campbell School of Business, Green Hall, Room 109.

Campbell School of Business Dean John Grout said that a new feature this year is that the students are taking appointments for the service. “You know how Berry College always says experience it first hand, well, this is our attempt to provide that experience for accounting students,” Grout said. The dean said the program is particularly helpful to students’ development of client relationships as well as the need to continuously research ever-changing tax laws.

The Berry students have hooked up with the Internal Revenue Service Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program to run the program for the fourth consecutive year.

At least five students will be available at any given time to provide the tax assistance.

“Two will be allocated to doing appointments and then we’ll have a third one who will be doing walk-in traffic,” Grout said. “We also have Kseniya (Shakhova, a junior accounting and finance double major who is the site coordinator) who will be providing quality control and coordination and then we’ll have a greeter who will be helping individuals with their preliminary paperwork to understand what kind of forms they are going to need.”

Shakhova said the Berry College students use the Tax Wise program, and one of her primary responsibilities is ensuring the student volunteers are properly trained and ready to go. “Last year we prepared over 100. We’re hoping to do 150 or more this year,” Shakhova said.

She’s hoping for a career in the corporate finance world with a firm that will allow her to travel. Shakhova was born and raised in Russia but has been living in Forsyth County, Ga., before coming to Berry College.

Grout said the students have achieved different levels of certification with the IRS some at the highest level, others at an intermediate level. “We look at the information about the individual to make sure the person preparing their taxes is qualified to do so,” Grout said.

Berry typically graduates 10-20 students each year in the accounting program

To make an appointment, Romans can email freetaxes@berry.edu or call 706-236-2233.

The AARP also offers free tax assistance at the main Rome-Floyd County library, Mondays from 1 to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and at the Charles C. Parker Center at Etowah Park on Wednesdays from 1 to 4 p.m.