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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Discovery Place

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 431572455
MO · NTEE P33Z
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Sharon Winton, Executive Director / CEO ($72,477) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 334 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 87th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Sharon Winton — reported title “EXECUTIVE DI”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

334 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 334 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$237 total compensation of comparable organizations → $350,686 $72,477
$16,27110th
$34,96225th
$48,971Median
$60,61675th
$76,49190th
$72,477This org · 87th
p10$16,271
p25$34,962
p50$48,971
p75$60,616
p90$76,491
$72,477

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 MO 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
Wonder World Preschool Inc MN$418,651 Treasurer $3,015 $2,813 2023
Greensboro Community Childcare Cent VT$419,118 Executive Di $61,303 $58,257 2023
Kangaroos Pouch Child Care & MS$419,222 President $57,500 $60,464 2023
Mount Pleasant Community Childcare IA$416,681 Executive Di $40,000 $40,165 2024
Bible Way Church Of Georgetown SC$420,557 Director $52,000 $51,219 2023
West Kemper Kiddie Kollege Inc MS$415,430 Director $81,977 $86,203 2023
Faith Hope & Love School CA$414,917 Director $45,000 $34,716 2025
Apple Tree Center Inc IN$414,407 Key Employee $45,904 $45,705 2023
Kings Academy Child Enrichment Center Inc VA$413,812 Director $30,037 $26,596 2024
Court Appointed Special Advocate OH$413,551 Executive Di $78,172 $75,929 2024
Mountain Sprouts Children's Community WA$413,422 Executive Director $65,201 $53,533 2024
Capacidad MA$412,875 Executive Director $71,640 $57,516 2025
Bright Beginnings Learning Center SD$423,878 Manager $34,413 $34,830 2024
Academy Of Learning Inc AR$424,091 Director $21,950 $22,626 2024
A Child's Delight Too Inc MN$412,253 Executive Di $36,900 $34,425 2023
Norma Gist Peoples' Free Child Development Program Inc CA$424,900 Executive Director $34,405 $27,245 2024
Hilltop Child Care Center Inc MD$425,376 Executive Director $85,688 $73,466 2024
Willa Road Childrens Center DE$425,561 Director $59,350 $54,867 2023
Butte Valley Montessori CA$410,323 Controller $66,387 $51,216 2025
Northwest Youth Power Elc Site 3 Inc GA$410,139 Executive Director $59,819 $56,788 2023
Faith Academy Inc NC$409,942 Ceo / President $62,400 $59,129 2024
Greenville Avenue Child Development Center TX$409,616 Daycare Director $42,920 $40,536 2023
Rise Child Development Center Inc TX$409,298 Ceo $93,345 $88,159 2023
Phmc 1500 PA$408,656 Vp & Secretary $372,461 $350,686 2023
Crosskids Child Development Center AR$408,653 Assistant Di $5,000 $5,306 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MO cost of living and 2023 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 MO 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 default87th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)80th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted89th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted87th

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 (Sharon Winton) 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 334 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (P33), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $72,477 is reasonable (approximately the 87th 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.