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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

East County Youth Symphony

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 205881556
CA · NTEE A69
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Alexandra Keegan, Executive Director / CEO ($44,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 59 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 54th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

59 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 59 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$940 total compensation of comparable organizations → $112,987 $44,000
$7,91510th
$21,50425th
$40,812Median
$56,72475th
$71,87790th
$44,000This org · 54th
p10$7,915
p25$21,504
p50$40,812
p75$56,724
p90$71,877
$44,000

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 CA 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
South Coast Symphony CA$234,409 Ceo $23,332 $22,663 2024
Symphony Of The Redwoods CA$234,665 Executive Director $16,402 $16,402 2023
Experiential Orchestra Inc NY$230,111 General Manager $4,500 $4,574 2024
Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association OR$230,007 Artistic Chair Sinfonietta Dir $5,500 $5,598 2025
Metropolitan Youth Symphony Inc MI$236,483 Executive Director $37,451 $42,361 2025
Huntsville Youth Orchestra Inc AL$228,701 Executive Dir $16,000 $20,018 2023
Arizona Philharmonic Inc AZ$228,246 Executive Dir. $25,000 $27,045 2024
Portland Chamber Music Festival ME$228,015 Executive Director $40,404 $46,854 2023
Macon Pops Inc GA$239,728 Ceo $48,500 $56,475 2023
Monterey County Pops CA$225,001 Executive Director $18,337 $18,337 2023
Alpharetta Symphony Orchestra Inc GA$224,666 Executive Director $24,800 $28,049 2024
Chamber Music Oc CA$243,060 Executive Dir. $10,580 $10,580 2023
Arapahoe Philharmonic Inc CO$245,061 Executive Di $73,163 $81,244 2023
Napa Valley Youth Symphony CA$221,203 Executive Director $54,000 $54,000 2023
Black Hills Symphony Orchestra Society SD$246,108 Executive Director $33,099 $40,031 2025
Douglas County Youth Orchestra Inc CO$246,704 Director $44,136 $46,378 2025
Cascade Symphony Orchestra Inc WA$218,574 Executive Director $72,000 $70,641 2025
Oregon East Symphony OR$248,785 President $900 $940 2024
Bemidji Symphony Orchestra MN$249,976 Executive Di $43,728 $47,350 2025
Barenboim-said Foundation (Usa) NY$216,233 Executive Director $91,667 $93,174 2024
Youth Orchestras Of Charlotte NC$214,280 Former Ex. Dir. $30,485 $35,431 2024
Lake Washington Symphony Orche WA$253,894 President $5,000 $5,036 2024
Kennett Symphony Of Chester County PA$254,669 Music Direct $29,154 $33,669 2023
Capital City Symphony DC$210,335 Executive Dir. $24,334 $24,729 2023
Tertulia Inc NY$210,279 Board Member $39,000 $40,812 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 CA 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 default54th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)61st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted54th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted54th

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 (Alexandra Keegan) 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 59 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A69), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $44,000 is reasonable (approximately the 54th 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.