Course # 39404 Section Number 1 Day(s) Tu Time(s) 5:00pm-7:50pm Term Winter 2024 Specialization Markets & Regulation Finance & Policy Social & Economic Inequality Course Instructor Damon Jones Syllabus Syllabus 12/19/23 The first component of this course will feature seminar discussions of inequality in the US, with respect to income, gender and race, and how these interact with US tax policy. We will have a focus on income transfers to low-income households such as the Earned Income Tax Credit. We will also review current policy topics in Household Finance, the study of how households save, borrow, and/or use insurance to overcome unexpected changes in household income. In addition, we will discuss the process of filing tax returns, the prevalence of income tax refunds, and the various industries, both non-profit and for-profit, that have arisen around this phenomenon. Next, students will go into the field, and work as volunteer tax preparers for a local, Chicago non-profit, Ladder Up. Students will be trained as tax preparers (which requires a 3-hour training session), learn how these services are delivered, and will also learn about the various social goals and public benefits that are often coupled with this process. Tax season begins in late January, and the students will volunteer weekly for about 6 weeks, until the end of the quarter. Students are also encouraged, though not required, to continue to volunteer until the end of the tax season, April 15th. Finally, students will produce a final project as a part of a group project. This course counts towards the Finance & Policy Certificate, or the Markets & Regulation Certificate. Quarter Title Instructor Day(s) Time(s) Syllabus Winter 2024 Inequality, Household Finance, and Tax Policy Damon Jones Tuesday 5:00pm-7:50pm Syllabus Recent News More news Affordable Care Act Led to Parents Staying in Jobs Longer, Study Finds Tue., July 16, 2024 Harris Voices: Amilcar Guzman, CLA'24, on an Education Inside and Outside the Classroom Mon., July 15, 2024 What's the Right Amount of Repression? UChicago Scholars Explore the Dictator's Dilemma Mon., July 15, 2024 Upcoming Events More events Get to Know Harris! A Virtual Information Session Wed., July 17, 2024 | 12:00 PM Civic Leadership Academy 2025 Virtual Information Session Thu., July 18, 2024 | 12:00 PM Virtual Event Chicago, IL 60637 United States Harris Campus Visit Thu., July 25, 2024 | 10:00 AM Keller Center 1307 E 60th St Chicago, IL 60637 United States