February 2022 - Newsletter
Michigan Jump$tart Coalition is here to help you navigate and expand your skills around taxes. We know this can be a dry and tricky topic with all the changes that come in the Tax Code.
 
The IRS has officially started filing individual tax returns for 2021 as of January 24, 2022. For most filers, the tax deadline will be April 18, 2022 which is when you must send in your return and pay taxes from last year.
 
This newsletter is here to help you in your classrooms with tax specific content that you can implement along with professional development opportunities to broaden your tax skills. We also wanted to share those tax preparation software that can help you prepare your taxes for FREE!
Tax Preparation Options
Getting organized with all your tax paperwork will help save you time. The IRS has created a guide can help you jump into doing your taxes to make things easier along details on new items to consider when filing your returns this year.

The IRS has created free opportunities for those individuals and families that qualify. One of the programs you can learn about in your community is called the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program where you can get free tax help from an IRS-certified volunteer. VITA services are available to people who earn $58,000 or less during tax year 2021. You can find a local provider here.

We know that filing taxes can feel overwhelming because of so many options you have available in terms of free filing options along with those where it costs money. To help you learn more about the different programs by checking out this playlist put together by The College Investor on YouTube. It breaks down each of the tax preparation software in short videos to help learn the pros/cons of each.
Scholarships - 2022 Opportunity

The past two years, Michigan Jump$tart Coalition awarded $3,000 in post-secondary education scholarships to six Michigan high school students ($500 each). These student scholarship recipients hailed from across the state - Metro Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Greater Lansing - and were selected from hundreds of applicants. 
 
We are excited to announce we will have the scholarship opportunity this year! Check our website, social media, and your inbox for more details as the applicant portal is expected to launch in March with winners to be announced over the summer.

If you are interested in learning more about best scholarship websites, you can check out this blog post by the Scholarship System.  
Professional Development Opportunities

We are building a calendar of professional development opportunities and other events. Please let us know if you have information to add.

FEBRUARY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

MSU Extension: For the month of February, MSU Extension in conjunction with 4-H Careers & Entrepreneurship has created a Winter Series to help teach kids about Adulting. Each FREE online session takes place each Wednesday at 4pm. You can sign up for all or each individual session by checking out this link. The sessions include:

  • February 2 - Wealth Building
  • February 9 - Workplace Professionalism
  • February 16 - Taxes and Your Paycheck
  • February 23 - Food Safety

Below you will find several virtual opportunities throughout the month of February by the following organizations:
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