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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Cambridge Art Association

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 042382611
MA · NTEE A400
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Erin Becker, Executive Director / CEO ($85,169) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 62 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 85th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Erin Becker — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

62 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 62 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$23 total compensation of comparable organizations → $113,841 $85,169
$11,84810th
$24,87625th
$57,185Median
$77,33475th
$88,54390th
$85,169This org · 85th
p10$11,848
p25$24,876
p50$57,185
p75$77,334
p90$88,543
$85,169

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 MA 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
Art Saint Louis MO$270,260 Executive Director $20,184 $24,492 2023
The Artist Book Foundation MA$269,033 Executive Director $30,585 $30,585 2024
Manhattan Graphics Center Inc NY$271,886 Board Member $5,850 $6,057 2023
The Digs Chicago IL$263,945 Director $47,530 $51,999 2024
Sacramento Master Singers CA$250,238 Artistic Director $24,750 $24,485 2023
Alchemy Art Center WA$292,178 Co-director $32,270 $33,101 2023
Associated Artists Of Pittsburgh PA$246,204 Executive Director $72,877 $83,264 2023
Clayart Guild Of The Hamptons Inc NY$245,843 Trustee $3,200 $3,218 2024
The Light Factory NC$294,949 Executive Di $46,442 $53,401 2024
The Alliance For American Quilts Inc NC$243,639 Executive Director $75,868 $87,236 2024
Kansas City Artists Coalition MO$243,347 Executive Director $48,752 $59,159 2023
Cuyahoga Valley Art Center OH$299,875 Executive Di $77,895 $91,811 2024
Stay Arts CA$300,980 Executive Director $35,229 $34,853 2023
Lexington Art League Inc KY$239,202 Executive Director $56,100 $65,343 2025
Open Studios Inc CO$238,827 Executive Director $55,000 $60,422 2023
Mooresville Artist Guild NC$302,180 Executive Dir. $21,839 $25,111 2024
Vienna Arts Society Inc VA$235,835 Art Center D $15,000 $16,593 2023
Maine Crafts Association ME$233,069 Executive Director $20 $23 2023
Octagon Center For The Arts IA$310,524 Executive Director $47,000 $55,792 2025
The Sculpture Center OH$226,726 Executive Di $66,626 $80,848 2023
Martha's Vineyard Art Association MA$225,167 Gallery Dire $15,335 $15,788 2023
Center For Contemporary Arts TX$315,227 Executive Director $71,066 $79,108 2024
Gallery Route One CA$224,306 Executive Dir. $40,174 $38,604 2024
Filter Photo Nfp IL$224,054 Executive Director $35,338 $38,661 2024
Lansing Art Gallery & Education Center MI$320,045 Acting Executive Director $56,140 $66,388 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MA 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 MA 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 default85th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)94th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted87th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted82nd

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 (Erin Becker) 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 62 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A40), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $85,169 is reasonable (approximately the 85th 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.