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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

South Carolina First Steps To

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 571098006
SC · NTEE B122
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Shirleen Lewis, Executive Director / CEO ($75,960) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 84 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 68th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

84 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 84 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$947 total compensation of comparable organizations → $247,056 $75,960
$18,07210th
$27,73025th
$50,071Median
$81,23175th
$113,90090th
$75,960This org · 68th
p10$18,072
p25$27,730
p50$50,071
p75$81,231
p90$113,900
$75,960

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
Our Grounds Inc FL$454,334 Executive Director And Occupational Therapist $83,077 $72,664 2024
Philadelphia Middle College Foundation PA$455,182 Director $40,000 $37,139 2024
Three Oclock Project LA$455,968 Executive Di $85,000 $89,717 2023
United World Schools Usa Inc NJ$457,065 Executive Director $150,000 $124,692 2024
Wakiya Foundation Inc VA$450,050 President $27,500 $26,495 2022
Friends Of Woodstock School Inc WA$459,722 Administrative Manager $58,667 $50,348 2023
Developmental Educational Services PA$449,301 Executive Director $10,528 $9,775 2024
Saint Sebastian Project Inc CA$447,196 Executive Director $27,000 $21,707 2024
Vbr Research And Education VT$445,559 Ed Vt Talent Pipeline $41,981 $39,342 2024
Quincy Catholic Elementary Schools IL$443,476 Executive Di $72,800 $66,636 2024
Friends Of Israel Sci-tech Schools NY$472,876 Executive Di $69,659 $60,337 2023
Colorado School Finance Project Inc CO$434,220 Executive Director $128,414 $111,688 2025
Fillmore Community Auction MN$432,357 President $1,000 $947 2023
The Partnership Plan For Stillwater MN$430,355 Executive Di $38,978 $35,859 2024
Corporate Tax Foundation AZ$482,198 President $23,416 $20,967 2024
Rising Act Films Inc GA$426,726 President $104,000 $97,360 2024
Honored Foundation DC$424,358 Executive Director - Term End 10/2024 $140,569 $114,848 2024
Edina Give And Go MN$421,928 Executive Di $52,050 $46,651 2025
District 51 Foundation CO$418,802 Executive Di $20,558 $18,896 2023
Philadelphia Robotics Coalition Inc PA$418,401 Executive Director $80,000 $74,278 2024
12tribe Films Foundation NY$418,314 Board Member $13,771 $11,586 2024
Cuny School Of Labor And Urban Studies NY$412,275 Executive Director (To Dec '23) $38,553 $32,436 2024
Helena Education Foundation MT$407,493 Executive Director $80,640 $83,322 2023
Independent Schools Corporate Tax Fnd AZ$504,812 President $21,407 $19,168 2024
Southeast Community Foundation CA$506,443 Ceo $92,500 $76,563 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to SC 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 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 default68th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)62nd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted73rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted45th

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 (Shirleen Lewis) 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 84 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B12), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $75,960 is reasonable (approximately the 68th 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.