WinShape College Program

What WinShape College Program does

WinShape College Program is a faith-based, four-year residential community program founded in 1984 at Berry College in Mt. Berry, Georgia. It enrolls approximately 125 Berry College students at capacity, with 30-34 new students admitted each year, and provides a guaranteed $32,000 annual scholarship split between WinShape Foundation ($16,000) and Berry College ($16,000). The program operates as a discipleship-focused community within a private liberal arts college context, where participating students live, study, and participate in structured faith and leadership formation alongside their degree coursework. The program has produced 1,200+ alumni over four decades.

The program is operated as a non-profit ministry under the WinShape Foundation, which is affiliated with the Cathy family behind Chick-fil-A. The business model is not revenue-generating; rather, it is grant- and donor-funded, with operating costs underwritten by the parent foundation and augmented by institutional support from Berry College. The organization employs 101-250 staff and reported serving nearly 1,000 students across its Residential Communities and Discipleship Intensives programs in 2023. In 2024, the organization consolidated back to a single Berry College-based campus, discontinuing expansion campuses at Belmont Abbey, NC State, and University of Central Florida that had served 180 students in 2023-24, narrowing its operational footprint to the core residential model.

Name

WinShape College Program

Legal name

WinShape College Program

Website

https://college.winshape.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

WinShape College Program is a faith-based, four-year residential community founded in 1984 at Berry College in Mt. Berry, Georgia, serving approximately 125 students annually through a donor-funded $32,000 scholarship split between WinShape Foundation and Berry College. The program operates as a non-profit ministry under the Cathy family-affiliated WinShape Foundation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Faith-Based Higher Education Ministry

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Fundraising & Annual Giving (EDALAOAB)

Keywords

• Residential college ministry
• Faith-based education
• Discipleship training
• Student leadership development
• Ministry scholarship program

Headquarters

HQ city

Berry

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Scholarship Funding (Ministry-Funded): The WinShape College Program is a ministry-funded initiative. Students receive $16,000 per year from the WinShape Foundation and a minimum of $16,000 per year from Berry College, totaling a guaranteed minimum of $32,000 in scholarship funding per academic year. The program also allows students to combine outside scholarships (e.g., Pell Grant, Hope).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

WinShape College Program is a four-year residential faith-based community experience run exclusively on Berry College's campus in Mount Berry, Georgia, designed to help undergraduate students discover their God-given identity through discipleship, mentorship, and leadership development. Participants receive a guaranteed minimum $32,000 annual scholarship ($16,000 from the WinShape Foundation plus at least $16,000 from Berry College) and engage in three structured components: Catalytic Events, weekly Core Training small groups, and student-led Community Impact Teams.

Product overview

WinShape College Program is a single unified product - a four-year residential community experience at Berry College. The program provides faith-based discipleship and leadership development through three integrated training components: Catalytic Events (multi-day experiential encounters like FreshThing orientation, Formation Weekend, and Dream Casting Trip), Core Training (weekly small group sessions covering topics like Identity in Christ and Biblical Community), and Community Impact Teams (student-led ministry teams for community service). All participants receive a $32,000 annual scholarship and live in dedicated dormitories. Previously, the program also offered Discipleship Intensives for students at other campuses and expansion communities at partner universities, but has since consolidated to serve only Berry College students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Residential Communities: Four-year discipleship program helping college students grow in their faith through catalytic events, core training, and community impact teams.
• Discipleship Intensives

Products and services

• WinShape College Program (Residential Communities) A four-year residential faith-based community experience at Berry College in Mount Berry, Georgia, designed to help undergraduate students discover their God-given identity through discipleship, leadership development, and Christian mentorship. Each accepted student receives a guaranteed minimum $32,000 annual scholarship ($16,000 from the WinShape Foundation plus at least $16,000 from Berry College), lives in a dedicated campus dormitory, and participates in Catalytic Events (multi-day experiential encounters), weekly Core Training small groups, and student-led Community Impact Teams. Current capacity is 125 students with 30–34 new admits per year.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,200+ alumni over 40 years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship / core and core.

• Belmont UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee was one of the first three expansion campus Residential Communities launched in 2019, with recruiting beginning fall 2020. However, as of 2024, WinShape is returning to its original vision and partnering exclusively with Berry College, so this partnership is historical.
• North Carolina State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019NC State in Raleigh, North Carolina was one of the first three expansion campus Residential Communities launched in 2019, with recruiting beginning fall 2020. However, as of 2024, WinShape is returning to its original vision and partnering exclusively with Berry College, so this partnership is historical.
• University of Central FloridaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019UCF in Orlando, Florida was one of the first three expansion campus Residential Communities launched in 2019, with recruiting beginning fall 2020. However, as of 2024, WinShape is returning to its original vision and partnering exclusively with Berry College, so this partnership is historical.
• Local Churches and College Ministries (Discipleship Intensives)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Discipleship Intensives (originally called LifeCast, launched 2015) partnered with local churches and college ministries to equip and commission college-aged students to make disciples in their own communities. Served over 700 young adults across 11 cities in 2023. As of 2024, the focus has shifted exclusively to Berry College.
• Berry Collegeflagship / coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1984WinShape College Program was launched in 1984 in partnership with Berry College. Berry College provides the campus setting, student housing in dedicated dormitories, and awards a minimum of $16,000 per year in scholarship funding to each WinShape student. The partnership has been exclusive since 2024, with WinShape focusing solely on the Berry College Residential Community going forward.
• WinShape FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe WinShape Foundation (founded by S. Truett Cathy and Jeannette Cathy) funds the scholarship program, awarding $16,000 per year to each WinShape College Program student. The Foundation provides the programmatic vision, ministry framework, and funding that underpins the residential community at Berry College.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• Ratio Christian Program: Ratio Christian operates a multi-campus residential Christian community and discipleship program for college students — the closest direct analog to WinShape College Program in terms of mission, residential model, and four-year structured spiritual formation at partner universities.
• Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ): Cru runs one of the largest Christian collegiate ministries in the U.S., focused on evangelism, discipleship, and leadership development among college students — directly comparable to WinShape in audience, mission, and student-development approach.
• Reformed University Fellowship (RUF): RUF is a campus ministry affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in America that disciples undergraduates through small groups, mentoring, and large gatherings — sharing WinShape's target audience of Christian undergraduates and emphasis on mentorship and community.
• InterVarsity Christian Fellowship: InterVarsity is a large campus-focused evangelical ministry that disciples and develops college students through small groups, Bible studies, and leadership pipelines — overlapping heavily with WinShape in target audience (U.S. undergraduates) and mission of faith-based student formation.
• Baptist Collegiate Ministry (various state conventions): Baptist Collegiate Ministries serve college students on hundreds of U.S. campuses with discipleship, community, and leadership development — a comparable faith-based student formation model, though typically less residential and without scholarship-funded enrollment.
• The Navigators: The Navigators run collegiate ministry focused on spiritual multiplication, discipleship, and one-on-one mentoring among college students — comparable faith-based student formation mission and mentoring intensity to WinShape's Core Training model.

Emerging players

• Summit Ministries: Summit Ministries runs worldview and leadership training programs (including student conferences and the Gap Year program) aimed at discipling Christian young adults — a comparable faith-based discipleship and leadership formation offering for the same demographic, though delivered through short-term conferences rather than residential community.
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA): FCA ministers to athletes and coaches on college campuses, with WinShape explicitly accommodating student-athletes — sharing an overlapping sub-segment (faith-seekers in campus athletics) and a similar evangelical discipleship emphasis.
• Young Life College: Young Life College extends the well-known youth ministry into the undergraduate years with discipleship and community programming — overlapping with WinShape on faith-based student development but typically less residential and more community/church-based.

Broad incumbents

• WinShape Camps: WinShape Camps is the sister ministry of WinShape Foundation, running faith-based summer camps for children and youth — a comparable faith-rooted, Cathy-family-affiliated nonprofit with the same brand, donor base, and discipleship philosophy but serving a younger demographic.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WinShape College Program