SPRINGFIELD, MA. - February 5, 2009 - Business was good for Social(k) in 2008. The number of companies and organizations adopting the company's socially responsible retirement platform for their 401(k) or 403(b) plans increased beyond expectations. The nation's most diverse socially responsible retirement product grew as a result of the ever-expanding number of companies looking for socially responsible retirement options, questioning the single-sided analysis and research inherent in conventional mutual funds' primary pursuit of financial returns.

"Particularly with the economic downturn, investors are increasingly wanting to put their money in funds that have been screened for ethical conduct and are signing up with Social(k) in ever greater numbers," said Rob Thomas, president of Social(k), noting he views 2009 as another positive year for socially responsible retirement plans. Because of the popularity of the Social(k) program, Thomas was a finalist for Co-op America's "Green Business Leadership Award" in November, 2008, for the second year in a row.

New Social(k) clients in 2008 included organizations and companies from the animal welfare, environment, organic, sustainability, and foundations sectors, including 1Sky (Takoma Park, MD), Animal Legal Defense Fund (Cotati, CA), Great Plains Institute (Minneapolis, MN), NY Jobs with Justice (NY, NY), and Vermont Community Loan Fund (Montpelier, VT).

One attraction to the plan: it is made up of over 150 winning funds such as The Appleseed Fund, a no-load mutual fund investing in sustainable, undervalued companies, which global fund analysts Lipper, Inc. ranked as 2008's top-returning U.S. midcap value fund and Morningstar, Inc. ranked as the best-performing socially responsible mutual fund of 2008. The fund joins other stellar funds such as Pax World Balanced Fund, honored by MutualsAdvisor.com as one of their "Top Ten Mutual Funds for 2008" and Winslow Green Growth, ranked by Lipper as the number one small cap growth mutual fund for the three-year period ending July 31, 2007.1 Social(k) also offers more than 2000 conventional funds to provide investors flexibility in meeting investment goals.

In the past 18 years, since the inception of KLD's Domini 400 Social Index on May 1, 1990, its annualized returns of 7.88 percent have beaten the S&P 500's annualized returns of 7.24 percent (as of January 31, 2009).

"It is clear the demand for the Social(k) product is strong and we are proud to be the recordkeeper for such a company," said Ross Brown, SVP Sales & Relationship Management of ExpertPlan, the East Windsor, NJ-based retirement plan provider, noting that Social(k) continues to outperform as one of their top alliance partners.

Thomas was not content to merely oversee Social(k)'s growth. Upon reviewing the 2007 Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) intention to change requirements for non-ERISA 403(b) plans used by many non-profit organizations, he worked with other investment leaders across the country to gain clarification of the rule, then developed a Social(k) solution (supplying plan document and report functions) for the many organizations left wondering how they would adopt existing plans to comply with new rules. (Note: IRS has issued a 12-month extension for non-ERISA plans to adopt to new regulations, to January 1, 2010. Because if this extension, and renewed interest in SRI investing, Thomas believes 2009 will be another year of growth for Social(k).

To educate a variety of sectors about socially responsible retirement investing, Thomas addressed the organic food sector at the annual Organic Trade Association conference, business leaders of the future at Boston's Simmons School of Management, and socially responsible investors at the Dallas, TX-based Memnosyne Foundation and U.S. Green Building Council Colorado Chapter's "100 Friends of Colorado" corporate partners at an event co-hosted by UBS Financial Services.

Thomas stays involved in the community even outside of Social(k), serving as a judge for the Washington, DC-based William James Foundation's annual business plan competition for entrepreneur individuals and teams who are starting for-profit, mission-driven businesses that have a social or environmental bottom line. He also has volunteered to mentor trainees in the national Green for All Program led by Van Jones. In addition, Thomas became a signatory of the Carbon Disclosure Project which focuses on driving disclosure from thousands of companies worldwide, thus assisting in the transition to a low carbon economy.

Social(k) continues to donate 8.5 percent of pre-tax net sales to Heifer International for every client, qualifying Social(k) for One Percent for the Planet membership. Co-op America and Organic Trade Association also receive donations from Social(k) for members who use Social(k).

Social(k) continues to be well-received by the financial community with close to 400 financial advisors registering with the Springfield, MA-based company so as to be able to offer its unique retirement program to their clients as an alternative to the limited options normally offered through today's traditional sponsored programs.

About Social(k):
Springfield, MA-based Social(k) is the nation's most diverse socially responsible retirement platform for 401(k) and 403(b) plans, offering more than 150 screened socially responsible funds, including Calvert, Pax, Parnassus, Portfolio 21, and Winslow Green Growth funds, as well as more than 2000 conventional funds to choose from. Nearly 400 financial advisors have registered with Social(k) so as to offer its unique retirement program to their clients as an alternative to the limited options normally offered through today’s traditional sponsored programs. Social(k) is a founding B Corporation, Organic Trade Association affiliate, and member of Coop America and One Percent for the Planet.

¹Winslow Management Company, Winslow Green Growth Fund Ranked #1 in Small Cap Growth Category By Lipper (3-Year Period, 7/31/07), August 3, 2007.

Social(k)

Social(k)

Social(k) is a retirement plan platform with over 200 Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance, ESG, screened funds, rather than the usual one or two. In addition Social(k) offers over 2000 traditional funds to provide employees greater choice when determining portfolio mix. Social(k) is the first choice for mission driven organizations operating in a sustainable manner. Social(k) works with your existing advisor or we can refer someone from our network of over 500 advisors. Whether you have a plan or are just looking to offer one let us show you how we offer a sustainable investing advantage to your employees.

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