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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Walking Shadow Theatre Company

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 202923433
MN · NTEE A20
FY ending 2025-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of David Pisa, Executive Director / CEO ($6,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 158 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 9th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: David Pisa — reported title “Executive Director”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

158 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 158 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$967 total compensation of comparable organizations → $297,665 $6,500
$8,99810th
$22,58725th
$41,846Median
$59,33975th
$73,22190th
$6,500This org · 9th
p10$8,998
p25$22,587
p50$41,846
p75$59,339
p90$73,221
$6,500

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 MN 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
Appalachian Arts Craft Center Inc TN$168,701 Executive Director $48,115 $52,538 2024
Ne Sculpture Gallery Factory MN$168,662 Secretary $59,833 $61,416 2024
Center For Arts & Learning Inc VT$168,343 Executive Director $28,411 $30,583 2023
Fundacion Nacional Para La Cultura Popular PR$169,885 Administratror $9,000 $9,238 2024
Classic Planning Instit ME$167,461 Social Media $9,515 $9,898 2024
City College Center For NY$167,400 Managing Director $71,969 $67,557 2024
Viva Voices Choral Organization Inc KY$166,955 President $49,250 $53,549 2025
88 International Corp NY$171,603 President $23,650 $22,200 2024
Artseed CA$165,991 Exec Dir/secty $39,874 $35,767 2024
Snap Cultural Events Inc FL$173,240 President $33,660 $33,818 2023
Zgd Inc NY$173,301 Director $1,000 $967 2023
National Storytelling Membership Association Inc MO$163,293 Operations $11,598 $12,761 2024
Creative Downtown Appleton Inc WI$175,874 Executive Director $3,167 $3,436 2024
Waterloo Arts OH$161,096 Executive Di $43,333 $47,678 2024
Fremont Center For The Arts CO$159,801 Executive Director $13,884 $14,238 2023
Oklahoma Mural Syndicate OK$158,724 President $3,998 $4,708 2023
Carl Cherry Foundation CA$180,011 Executive Director $46,501 $41,712 2024
Tyler Park Center For The Arts Inc PA$157,663 Executive Director $15,000 $15,539 2024
Lewistown Art Center MT$157,562 Executive Di $31,346 $36,137 2023
Main Street Arts VT$180,787 Executive Dir. $30,300 $30,865 2025
Frank Theatre MN$156,939 Secretary $60,000 $61,588 2024
West Nebraska Arts Center NE$155,385 Executive Di $43,358 $48,443 2024
Tualatin Valley Creates OR$183,224 Executive Director $47,578 $45,898 2024
Orlando Community Arts Inc FL$183,943 President $13,500 $13,563 2023
Second's New Vision And Outreach Ministries MI$184,006 Board Member $9,450 $10,132 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MN cost of living and 2025 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 MN 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 default9th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)9th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted11th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted8th

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 (David Pisa) 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 158 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $6,500 is reasonable (approximately the 9th 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.