Arkansas tech startup GoodChange accepted into national accelerator program

Emily Wineland and Becky Pittman, founders of Arkansas-based fundraising technology company GoodChange, have been accepted into the nationally focused Higher Ground Labs (HGL) Accelerator’s sixth cohort.

HGL’s Accelerator is a four-month program that helps politically-focused startups achieve rapid product market fit, opens new doors for distribution, and builds community in the political technology space. Since 2017, Higher Ground Labs has invested in over 60 startups to build the political technology ecosystem and deployed over $50 million in capital.

Eight companies were selected to join HGL’s sixth cohort from a national pool of promising startups and represent the latest innovation ranging from fintech and AI to marketing and data analytics. Past accelerator participants include Calltime.ai, Mobilize, and BallotReady.

“We are thrilled and honored to join HGL’s sixth cohort and benefit from the proven mentorship, insight and guidance for which HGL has become nationally known,” said Wineland, GoodChange Chief Revenue and Operations Officer. “GoodChange was created to address the daily challenges faced in the real-world, day-to-day operations of political fundraising, and we are excited to work with HGL and our fellow cohort members in growing our focus and expanding our impact.”

GoodChange is a fundraising and financial management platform serving nonprofits, advocacy organizations, and political campaigns that delivers innovative, sustainable fundraising strategies that broaden market reach, increase operational efficiencies, and expand engagement opportunities for organizations.

“Navigating the political fundraising landscape is notoriously tough, and too often, prevents good candidates and organizations from entering the arena,” said Becky Pittman, GoodChange Chief Product and Marketing Officer. “However, by combining financial technology and innovation with proven fundraising strategies, GoodChange is empowering candidates and organizations to compete like never before, and with HGL’s expertise, we’re confident that we will continue to expand our approach to organizations and campaigns of all sizes across the nation.”

In January 2023, GoodChange officially launched its spare change round up feature allowing donors to round up purchases and donate the amount to the recipient of their choice. Additionally, GoodChange supports one-time payments, monthly recurring payments, same day ACH transfers, donor dashboards allowing donors to automatically start, stop, and switch their donations, and a social feed for engaging and updating donors in real time and away from the noise of traditional social media. Several new features are slated for release in the coming months.