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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Muses Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 260225045
AR · NTEE A20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Deleen Davidson, Executive Director / CEO ($65,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 314 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 75th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

314 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 314 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$251 total compensation of comparable organizations → $202,227 $65,000
$10,22310th
$29,82525th
$47,294Median
$64,52175th
$78,76190th
$65,000This org · 75th
p10$10,223
p25$29,825
p50$47,294
p75$64,521
p90$78,761
$65,000

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 AR 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
Father Matters Inc AZ$381,907 President/ceo $62,770 $53,705 2024
Tx Bicycle Coalition Education Fund TX$381,303 Executive Director $7,913 $7,042 2024
Ugly Duckling Presse Ltd NY$381,176 Press Manager $58,125 $46,727 2024
Festival In The Park NC$386,591 Executive Di $88,379 $81,241 2024
Documentary Arts Inc TX$387,152 Pres/treasurer $100,000 $88,992 2024
Statement Arts Inc NY$379,950 Secretary $60,818 $48,892 2024
The Wonderseed Foundation CA$379,075 Executive Direc $59,725 $47,236 2023
Kulture Klub Collaborative MN$388,636 Executive Director $20,572 $18,084 2024
Glen Arbor Arts Center MI$389,371 Executive Director $71,434 $65,595 2024
Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Inc CA$375,574 Executive Dir. $92,700 $71,213 2024
Bell Arts Factory CA$392,272 Executive Director $62,972 $49,804 2023
Artistic Freedom Initiative Inc NY$393,958 Co-executive Director & Secretary $157,338 $126,485 2024
Hawthorne Arts Collaborative ME$373,179 Executive Dir. $60,000 $53,450 2024
Millburn Institute Of Talent NJ$373,033 Principal $7,510 $5,811 2025
Arts Council Of Lake Oswego OR$371,294 Executive Director $97,734 $80,745 2024
Danzantes Unidos De California CA$369,632 Executive Director $50,000 $37,420 2025
Handmade Arcade PA$369,502 Executive Director $64,500 $57,223 2024
Beta-local Inc PR$369,234 Co-director $30,000 $30,886 2023
Stecoah Valley Arts Crafts & NC$369,110 Executive Di $47,020 $42,108 2025
Diaspora Arts Connection Inc CA$368,688 Executive Dir. $6,310 $4,847 2024
We Players CA$368,436 Artistic Director $55,000 $42,251 2024
Coming Together Festival Of Dance & NY$399,596 Executive Director $25,064 $20,744 2023
Hui Hoolana HI$399,678 President/treas $42,324 $33,711 2024
Sage Studio & Gallery TX$367,809 President $65,292 $59,821 2023
French American Museum Exchange Inc CT$402,616 Exec Directo $102,183 $85,235 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to AR 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 AR 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 default75th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)62nd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted77th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted75th

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 (Deleen Davidson) 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 314 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $65,000 is reasonable (approximately the 75th 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.