Moving from Strategic Plan to Campaign
Let’s say you have a shiny, new strategic plan and atop the polish of its visionary goals lies some cost to bring it to life. Sound familiar?
Often the cost to manifest a plan leads to the big C-word: campaign. And often that campaign includes a goal that far surpasses any annual fundraising or past campaigns. And that can be daunting – both to board and staff.
In the case of Hilton Head Preparatory School, a 60-year-old independent school in South Carolina, their last campaign – 20 years prior – raised $6.5 million for a new field house. They had a fairly new head of school and needed about $20 million to fully fund their vision.
So, they did what many nonprofits do (especially those with a built-in constituency) and launched a feasibility study to test the philanthropic support for their proposed project.
At this point, you have a few key questions to ask yourself:
- What is the campaign about? Confirm the objectives to meet the campaign’s vision, and secure some sense of the associated cost for each component of the campaign.
- What is the potential campaign goal range? A feasibility study needs a potential goal to test because you’ll want to gauge what the philanthropic marketplace could support in order to determine a working campaign goal.
- Who might be the campaign’s lead supporters? Work from a gift chart based on the potential goal amount and start listing top donors who could make significant gifts. This will become your interviewee list for the feasibility study.
- Who would lead the campaign? Consider whose name resonates most with potential donors as a campaign chair – someone who can make a lead gift and will influence others.
After spending 2024 working on their strategic plan, which set the tone for the needed campus improvements, the board and staff at Hilton Head Prep focused on achieving academic excellence and began planning for the campaign in 2025. Goals of the campaign include: endowment growth to support faculty salaries and scholarships; a new academic center, renovations throughout campus, and a new athletic complex.
They started making asks in the fall of 2025 with a working goal of $14 million, the absolute minimum they need to accomplish. With increased philanthropic support, they will achieve all their goals.
In early 2026, a transformational $1.5 million gift from Jamie Berndt and Eric Wojcikiewicz, parents of two Hilton Head Prep graduates, was announced to establish the Wojcikiewicz Family Financial Aid Endowment Fund, providing need-based financial assistance to students who aspire to attend Hilton Head Prep but may not otherwise see it as an option. This extraordinary investment was the largest endowment gift in the school’s history at the time, marking a defining moment in the life of the school.
Margot Brown, Chief Advancement Officer of Hilton Head Preparatory School, spoke of her work with CapDev and Senior Counsel, Nancy Appel:
“Our experience with CapDev over the past 18 months has been an incredibly positive one. From guiding us through a comprehensive feasibility study to helping us navigate the quiet phase of our campaign today, Nancy Appel and CapDev have been a trusted partner every step of the way.
Nancy brings a wealth of campaign experience and expertise, but what we have valued just as much is her thoughtful, practical approach. She understands that every organization, community, and campaign is different and has helped us develop strategies that make sense for our school and our donors. She also draws upon the broader expertise of the CapDev team, bringing us current trends, best practices, and additional perspectives whenever they can strengthen our work.
Throughout the process, Nancy has been responsive, encouraging, candid when we need her to be, and genuinely invested in our success. She has helped us stay focused and confident through each stage of the campaign, while giving us the tools and guidance to build our own internal capacity along the way.”
As the campaign progresses, the goals envisioned in the board’s initial work to craft the strategic plan will come to life, upheld by the aspirations of many supporters whose gifts will not only enrich the school, but will also deeply enrich their own lives, sparking generosity and gratitude. And that is the true impact of moving from strategic planning into campaign.