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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Columbia School Linguistic

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 133907236
NJ · NTEE B300
FY ending 2025-05-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Nancy Stern, Executive Director / CEO ($10,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 37 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 5th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

How comparable organizations were selected

37 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 37 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$3,883 total compensation of comparable organizations → $232,085 $10,000
$14,51710th
$32,09325th
$72,253Median
$120,61475th
$159,86590th
$10,000This org · 5th
p10$14,517
p25$32,093
p50$72,253
p75$120,614
p90$159,865
$10,000

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 NJ cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
Clarksburg Electrical Joint ApprenticeshWV $187,894$68,620 990
United Union Of Roofers Local 119IN $219,578$111,171 990
Heat & Frost Insulators & AlliedIL $220,334$133,925 990
Incremental Development AllianceAR $220,700$167,891 990
The Trade School At Sbe IncCA $223,824$65,644 990
DestinyworksIN $226,555$181,857 990
Medical Training AcademyOR $179,933$20,944 990
Workforce Technician Education CenterCA $227,920$31,568 990
Nj Guard Training Academy IncNJ $228,420$66,911 990
Local Union #143 Operative Plasterer'sIL $178,306$86,130 990
Latino Learning Center IncTX $231,223$68,079 990
Simply Circus CorpMA $231,254$62,270 990
Tfg Heartwood IncMA $175,507$120,614 990
Madison Automotive Apprentices IncVA $174,610$63,143 990
Valley Academy For The Arts IncWI $174,214$14,833 990
The Daruby SchoolMO $235,114$25,571 990
Hastings Foundation ForMS $240,000$81,731 990
Landmark Training Development CompanyTN $163,464$3,883 990
Puget Sound Boilermakers App & Trn TrustWA $245,030$146,040 990
New Horizons Foundation - A SheetVA $250,660$108,459 990
Cocal GraciasAZ $253,446$51,466 990
Legacy Aviation Learning CenterMI $148,776$72,253 990
Rebound A Building Trades OrganizationWA $259,519$164,013 990
Ed3 GalaxyNY $266,626$32,093 990
Colorado Bioscience InstituteCO $266,856$82,625 990

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 NJ 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 default5th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)5th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted14th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted5th

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 (Nancy Stern) 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 37 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $10,000 is reasonable (approximately the 5th 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.