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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Big Brothers Big Sisters Of The Upstate

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 204243553
SC · NTEE O30
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Charlene Cheeks, Executive Director / CEO ($63,844) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 23 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 52nd percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Charlene Cheeks — reported title “CEO”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

23 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 23 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$10,394 total compensation of comparable organizations → $150,539 $63,844
$30,67510th
$45,65425th
$63,352Median
$91,32675th
$124,52590th
$63,844This org · 52nd
p10$30,675
p25$45,654
p50$63,352
p75$91,326
p90$124,525
$63,844

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to SC cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
Trusted Mentors Inc IN$360,676 Executive Director $45,972 $47,843 2023
Great Life Mentoring OR$373,727 Executive Director $99,781 $88,821 2024
Joshua And Caleb Leadership Centre OH$344,929 President $73,658 $74,781 2024
House Of Shiloh Family Services Inc TX$342,758 Director $60,000 $57,531 2024
You Can Mentor Inc TX$331,294 Executive Dir. $157,000 $150,539 2024
San Miguel Mentoring Program CO$329,675 Executive Di $93,170 $85,636 2024
Speakhire Inc NY$398,262 Exe. Director $140,275 $125,091 2023
The Mentoring Partnership Of Sw Pa PA$403,179 Executive Director $139,996 $133,822 2024
Volunteers For Youth Inc NC$321,949 Executive Dir. $43,885 $43,465 2024
The Hampton's Academy Inc IN$418,758 Ceo $33,229 $33,589 2024
Journey Forward Mentoring TX$306,974 Executive Director $57,500 $56,762 2023
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Information Center Of La LA$428,589 Contractor $23,180 $24,466 2024
Athletes For Kids WA$438,031 Executive Director $81,020 $71,585 2023
Champions Of Youth Inc IN$285,623 Executive Dir. $55,120 $57,363 2023
Buffalo & Western New York NY$274,371 Secretary $12,000 $10,394 2024
Mentor North MN$462,053 Exec Directo $60,322 $57,134 2024
Arkbuilders Inc OH$465,811 Ceo $62,400 $63,352 2024
Big Brothers Big Sisters Of Greater OH$468,912 President & Ceo $89,769 $93,830 2023
Maine Sports Group ME$254,847 Secretary $31,200 $29,947 2024
Man Up Mentoring Inc FL$247,790 Executive Director And Co-founder $39,200 $35,299 2024
Friends Of The Children Tacoma WA$487,003 Executive Director $129,419 $114,348 2023
16-10 Now & Then Inc TN$519,644 Executive Director $75,641 $78,464 2023
Mentoring Partnership Of New York Inc NY$522,567 Ceo $141,152 $122,262 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to SC cost of living and 2024 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to SC cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default52nd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)52nd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted52nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted52nd

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Charlene Cheeks) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 9, 2026, comparing compensation against 23 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (O30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $63,844 is reasonable (approximately the 52nd percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.