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November 13, 2025 - For 95 years, HighGround Advisors has walked alongside nonprofits and their donors, advancing their life-transforming work by protecting, strengthening and growing the assets they entrust to us.  From humble beginnings at the onset of the Great Depression to managing over $3 billion in assets, HighGround’s story is one of commitment to service and strong partnerships that have weathered decades.

As we celebrate this milestone anniversary, we are reflecting on where we came from and the mission that we are built upon.

Created out of Crisis

In 1929, the stock market crashed, setting off the Great Depression. The Baptist institutions of Texas were not immune to its effect, and many of them had already been struggling financially in the years leading up to the big crash. Leadership worried that, without intervention, the Texas Baptist universities, schools, children’s homes and hospitals may have to close their doors.

In response to these concerns, in 1930 the Baptist General Convention of Texas voted to form the Baptist Foundation of Texas to manage the assets of those institutions and save them from ceasing to exist.

The vision of those in charge was to build a Foundation that would play a unique role in enabling Baptist institutions to carry out their missions. The founders knew that by providing endowment management and charitable trust services, the Foundation could provide invaluable support to its client institutions and thus enhance each institution’s ability to perform its charitable work. 

Expanding the Mission

In that first year, the Foundation reported the assets under their management to be $1.3 million. By the next year, it had nearly doubled. As word of the Foundation’s prudent and capable management strategy spread, entities outside of Texas began reaching out. In 1938, the Foundation expanded to also manage assets of the Southern Baptist Convention, bringing its service to a national level.

By 1950, thanks to careful stewardship and the trust of its client partners, the Foundation had grown to manage $20 million in assets. By 1961, the assets under the Foundation’s management had grown to over $50 million.

By the time the Foundation reached its 50^th anniversary in 1980, it was managing over $200 million in assets and making distributions of $12.5 million to its clients.

In 1995, the Foundation’s assets had reached $1 billion, but there were no signs of slowing down. Instead, the Foundation sought to expand its impact by working with non-Baptist nonprofit clients who were making a difference in their communities and beyond. To that end, in 1996, a regulated trust company was added, which enabled the Foundation to serve nonprofit clients beyond the Baptist world and provided additional service flexibility to the Foundation’s core mission.   

Protecting our Clients

Beyond managing the financial assets of its client partners, the Foundation also advised their donors on charitable giving strategies including noncash assets, such as real estate and minerals, to help them maximize the impact of their contributions.

In 1995, when charities across the U.S., including many clients of the Foundation, found themselves under threat with a new lawsuit challenging charitable gift annuities and charitable trusts, leadership stepped up to ensure nonprofits would be protected. Terry Simmons and Tal Roberts, general counsel and COO of the Foundation, respectively, led the charge in lobbying for protection for the two invaluable giving vehicles. Their leadership resulted in President Clinton signing the Charitable Gift Annuity Antitrust Relief Act of 1995 and the Philanthropy Protection Act of 1995, protecting charities by affirming that antitrust and securities regulations do not apply to them.

As the Foundation continued to grow, an operations team was formed to manage daily operations and oversee administrative support activities. By the turn of the millennium, the Foundation was managing $2 billion in assets.

New Name, Same Mission

As the Foundation continued into the 2010s, new leadership launched initiatives to improve client communications and access, including an online client portal, rebranding and website development.

In 2015, the Foundation’s senior leadership undertook a brand study to better understand client and market perceptions of the Foundation. As a result of the brand study, the decision was made to rename Baptist Foundation of Texas as HighGround Advisors.  The name reflects HighGround’s faith-based legacy and represents HighGround’s commitment to continually striving to the next level for nonprofit client partners and furthering their mission.

During the next ten years, HighGround continued to increase functionality and by expanding its online offerings, continually reviewing short and long-term investment opportunities and evolving to meet the changing needs of its client partners.

2025 marks 95 years of HighGround history. Today, HighGround manages over $3 billion in assets for nonprofit organizations across the country, including many of the original Baptist institutions it was first formed to serve. These lasting relationships are a testament of HighGround’s ability to deliver consistent, exceptional service as well as the tailored solutions that are critical to nonprofits’ success.

Though the name and faces of HighGround have changed throughout the decades, the core commitment to protect, strengthen and grow the assets of nonprofits remains the same.

As HighGround looks forward to the next 95 years, its client partners’ needs will continue to dictate how the organization adapts and grows. It is those nonprofits, and the donors that support them, who have shaped HighGround into what it is and what it will be.

Jeff Smith, president and CEO of HighGround, summed up this sentiment best in a speech to HighGround’s client partners.

“Thank you for your trust, your partnership and your unwavering commitment meaningful work that transforms lives,” he wrote. “You inspire us. And you make us who we are. Your story is our story. Your mission, our mission. Together, we carry purpose forward.”