Sow Good Now is ready to take the next step in building a robust fundraising and impact management engine that fully aligns with its mission: empowering young athletes to become community leaders and changemakers through philanthropy.

Sow Good Now engages student-athletes in high school and college to lead service-based fundraising events (“GiveBacks”) that uplift younger elementary-aged children and provide them with access to sports, mentorship, and positive role models. These experiences demonstrate that everyone has gifts to share—time, talent, or resources—and that giving back can start at any age.

This project challenges the student consulting team to design a fundraising strategy and financial sustainability plan that not only strengthens SGN’s revenue streams (major gifts, recurring donors, grants, and corporate partnerships), but also captures the compelling impact stories of young people practicing philanthropy through sport. By developing scalable systems in Salesforce and data-informed strategies, the team will help Sow Good Now inspire donors, partners, and communities with a model that unites sports, service, and youth leadership for lasting change.

• 1. 
     Proposed Project Scope – Fundraising & Salesforce Application
     The student team will first research and develop a working understanding of Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud and how it can be used to organize, track, and leverage SGN’s data. This knowledge will then be applied to the following activities:
     1. Analyze SGN’s Impact Data (via Salesforce)
        • Review current data in Salesforce (youth athletes served, volunteer hours, GiveBack events, outcomes).
        • Recommend ways to structure and present this data in Salesforce to better inspire donors and sponsors.
        • Identify gaps in data collection and suggest Salesforce configurations or processes that could strengthen future fundraising.
     2. Benchmark Against Peer Organizations
        • Research similar youth sports–based nonprofits and their funding models.
        • Identify the mix of revenue sources (e.g., grants, corporate sponsors, events, major gifts) that have proven effective in similar contexts.
        • Highlight funding sources most relevant to SGN’s mission and capacity, noting how Salesforce could support tracking these sources.
     3. Explore Best Practices in Philanthropy & Sponsorship
        • Compile examples of effective fundraising campaigns, events, or donor engagement approaches that could be adapted to SGN.
        • Suggest low-barrier, high-impact fundraising activities that student-athletes can lead, with recommendations for tracking results in Salesforce.
        • Research and present on community centric grant making, especially those that engage youth
          
          

• 1. • Review SGN’s existing Salesforce setup, with a focus on:
       
       
       • Youth athletes served
         
         
       • Volunteer hours
         
         
       • GiveBack events
         
         
       • Fundraising gifts & prospects
         
         
       • Community partner data
         
         
     • Deliver a written assessment of current Salesforce data structure, highlighting gaps and inconsistencies.
       
       
     • Provide a recommended data model/field structure for SGN’s volunteer, donor, and partner tracking needs.
       
       
     • Suggest custom reports and dashboards that can visually demonstrate SGN’s impact to donors, sponsors, and board members.
       
       
  2. 2. Impact Data Analysis & Visualization
     
     
     • Analyze existing SGN impact data (volunteer hours, youth served, events held, etc.).
       
       
     • Recommend ways to present this data in Salesforce for storytelling and fundraising purposes.
       
       
     • Create at least 3 sample dashboards or report templates (e.g., Volunteer Hours by Program, Community Partner Engagement, Donor Pipeline Progress).
       
       
  3. 3. Benchmarking & Peer Research
     
     
     • Research comparable youth sports–based nonprofits to identify their funding models and revenue sources (grants, corporate sponsorships, events, major gifts, etc.).
       
       
     • Deliver a comparative matrix showing which funding strategies are most effective in similar contexts.
       
       
     • Highlight which revenue opportunities are most relevant to SGN’s mission, capacity, and partnerships.
       
       
  4. 4. Best Practices in Fundraising & Sponsorship
     
     
     • Compile case studies of successful fundraising campaigns, donor engagement efforts, or sponsorship strategies that align with SGN’s youth philanthropy model.
       
       
     • Recommend low-barrier, high-impact fundraising activities that student-athletes could lead (e.g., micro-campaigns, peer-to-peer giving).
       
       
     • Suggest how Salesforce can be configured to track, manage, and evaluate these activities.
       
       
  5. 5. Community-Centric Grantmaking Research
     
     
     • Conduct a brief research report on trends in community-centric philanthropy.
       
       
     • Highlight opportunities for SGN to engage funders who support youth-led initiatives and community partnerships.
       
       
     • Suggest how Salesforce can be used to track grant applications, deadlines, and outcomes.
       
       
  6. 6. Final Deliverables & Presentation
     
     
     • A comprehensive written report (10–15 pages) summarizing findings, recommendations, and Salesforce configurations.
       
       
     • Salesforce prototypes (sample dashboards, reports, and data fields) tailored to SGN’s needs.
       
       
     • A presentation to SGN leadership and board representatives with actionable recommendations and next steps.