February 2008– The Southern Good Faith Fund (SGFF), located in Little Rock, Arkansas, has retained the services of Schultz & Williams to develop an individual giving program and fundraising strategy and to assess the feasibility of an endowment campaign. The Southern Good Faith Fund works to increase the incomes and assets of low-income, low-skilled residents of the Delta in Arkansas and Mississippi—one of the poorest areas in the United States. SGFF strives to change the cycle of low education levels that lead to high unemployment and low wages by giving people the skills, training and support they need to make better lives for themselves and their families. SGFF offers unique programs that blend asset development, small business development, workforce development and public policy activities to improve the lives of these residents and offers individual opportunities that build confidence and competence, and encourage self-sufficiency.

Schultz & Williams is taking a multi-step approach to helping Southern Good Faith Fund build a sustainable base of support. "Our first step is to understand how SGFF is positioned in the marketplace for ongoing fundraising, and how they have identified their needs and priorities for a fundraising campaign and operation," said L. Scott Schultz, President of Schultz & Williams. "Through this analysis we will help SGFF identify the elements of their case for support that will be most attractive to potential donors, and we will define how to ‘package’ these elements most effectively."

Essential to developing strategies for successful fundraising, Schultz &Williams will assess the role of SGFF’s Board members and other volunteers who play a role in the fundraising process, review current fundraising policies and procedures and define the level of staffing needed to run the development program, including an endowment campaign. S&W will review the capability of and current relationship with SGFF’s top prospects and conduct research to augment the prospect list and search for volunteer leaders for the campaign and individual giving efforts. Outcomes of an extensive research process will define how much SGFF can raise for their operations and endowment from various constituencies and will include a comprehensive strategic development plan for the Fund.

Founded in 1987, Schultz & Williams is a national consulting firm headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Today S&W works with nonprofits throughout the United States and continues to exemplify its legacy as one of the first firms in the country to combine the principles of development, management and marketing into our consulting services—an approach that proves successful for nearly every client challenge.