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April 8, 2026 - Values should be more than words on a wall. They should be lived out in quiet moments, thoughtful decisions and the steady commitment of the people behind them. They should guide action, shape behavior and be lived out every day. At HighGround Advisors, our values have always been defined and strengthened by the staff who embody them in their work and interactions.

That’s why HighGround Advisors is proud to introduce our new core values: Serve. Steward. Shape.

These values embody the ideals HighGround staff put into their work each day as they help nonprofits and the donors who support them carry out their missions. Each of the three values were chosen to foster intentionality in the work of HighGround and are built on the organization’s strong foundation of excellence in service.

We SERVE. We lead with a servant heart, rooted in faith. We step in where there is a need, stay present and lead authentically.

We STEWARD. We act with integrity and professional excellence, faithfully managing all that is entrusted to us.

We SHAPE. We look ahead with vision and pursue growth and transformation with purpose and passion.

“These clear, concise and memorable, refined core values reflect our heritage and guide our work. We want to be known for our service, our stewardship and our vision for future growth and transformation. By speaking about them openly, we hope to attract team members and client partners who share these values,” said Jeff Smith, President and CEO of HighGround Advisors.

The core values were formally introduced at HighGround’s annual Vision Day in February 2026. The work, however, began more than a year earlier, when staff gathered at the 2025 Vision Day to reflect on a simple question: What makes HighGround, HighGround?

Those conversations sparked a yearlong effort to refine and articulate the values that have always been at the heart of our work. The refinement process was led by HighGround’s leadership team and informed by the insights shared during the Vision Day exercise. Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications Lacy Cagle helped shape the values into a framework that clearly expresses the organization’s purpose and approach.

As HighGround celebrated its 95th anniversary in 2025 and looked ahead to the next 95 years, the timing was right to bring those values into a unified framework.

“These core values are not new. They have been integral to the mission and work of HighGround since its founding in 1930,” she said. “Putting them down on paper in such a succinct way simply gives us the opportunity to keep them at the forefront of all we do and apply them as we work alongside each other and our client partners.”

As HighGround steps into its next chapter, these values will guide how we show up for our client partners and for one another, shaping a future worthy of the mission we serve, steward and shape.

About HighGround Advisors

Founded in 1930, HighGround Advisors is a nonprofit investment management and trust services company with $3.6 billion in assets. Our purpose is to advance the life-transforming work of our nonprofit client partners, and those who support them, by protecting, strengthening and growing the assets they entrust to us. Our areas of expertise include: endowment and investment management, real estate and minerals management, and gift planning. Our subsidiary, HighGround Trust Company, was established in 1996 and is chartered by the Texas Department of Banking.