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PeerBasis

Compensation Comparability Determination

Fostering Hope Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 342003272
SC · NTEE P20
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Estelle Shelton, Executive Director / CEO ($46,915) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 15 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 67^th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

How comparable organizations were selected

SectorOrganizations sharing the subject's NTEE classification (P20).
BudgetTotal revenue between $189,413 and $424,059 — 0.67× to 1.50× the subject's $282,706 (the band tightens as size grows).
GeographySame NTEE sector (P20) + SC + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue.

15 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography → 15 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$8,58510th

$12,79125th

$23,000Median

$47,71575th

$73,07690th

$46,915This org · 67th

p10$8,585

p25$12,791

p50$23,000

p75$47,715

p90$73,076

$46,915

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.

Organization	State	Total revenue	Total comp	Source
Shepherds Table A Sc Eleemos Corp	SC	$285,014	$7,509	990
New Way Global	SC	$294,229	$10,199	990
I Am Voices Inc	SC	$295,058	$12,853	990
Rebuilding Together Spartanburg Inc	SC	$259,238	$38,852	990
Plush Meadow Senior Housing Corp	SC	$309,368	$4,993	990
Good Samaritan Medical Clinic Inc	SC	$314,951	$47,430	990
Second Baptist Community	SC	$219,300	$20,400	990
Neighborhood Focus	SC	$348,321	$78,210	990
The South Carolina Juneteenth Freedom Fest	SC	$209,038	$14,418	990
Life In Abundance	SC	$207,262	$48,000	990
United Ministries Of Clinton	SC	$362,657	$23,000	990
Greenville's Gift	SC	$191,535	$12,728	990
Palmetto Family Council	SC	$415,123	$65,376	990
Faces And Voices Of Recovery Tri-county Inc	SC	$415,696	$45,000	990
Switch	SC	$420,743	$101,870	990

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

Peer count15 organizations. Compensation range $4,993–$101,870; filing years 2022–2024.
Size basisMatched on total revenue ($282,706); for reference, expenses $93,874 and assets $1,078,050. Revenue and expenses diverge this year — revenue may misrepresent operating size; weigh the expense-based view.
Role matchEstelle Shelton, reported title "Board Director", benchmarked as Executive Director / CEO. Selected as the organization's highest-paid individual without an exact title match — the board should confirm this is a comparable role.
Related-org pay1 peer report related-organization compensation (column E), which the D + F benchmark does not fully capture; review where material.
Outliers1 peer fall outside 1.5× the interquartile range — consider whether any reflect one-time payments (severance, deferred-comp payouts).

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

Basis	Subject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default	67^th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)	67^th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted	67^th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted	60^th

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

The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Estelle Shelton) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
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 15 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (P20) + SC + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
The authorized body determined that total compensation of $46,915 is reasonable (approximately the 67^th 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). 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.