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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Uncw Research Foundation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 262590097
NC · NTEE B99
FY ending 2025-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Dr Justine Reel, Executive Director / CEO ($54,419) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 423 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 40th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Dr Justine Reel — reported title “PRESIDENT”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

423 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 423 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$125 total compensation of comparable organizations → $317,693 $54,419
$15,16510th
$38,24425th
$64,986Median
$90,13275th
$120,13990th
$54,419This org · 40th
p10$15,165
p25$38,244
p50$64,986
p75$90,132
p90$120,139
$54,419

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 NC 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
Catch The Next Inc TX$443,997 Ceo $100,223 $102,535 2023
Romanza St Augustine Inc FL$446,105 President $4,000 $3,843 2023
Mala'ai HI$442,003 Former Executive Director $73,360 $65,247 2024
The Landing Place Inc IN$441,860 Director $62,500 $65,476 2024
East Side Institute For Group And Short NY$440,618 Executive Director $90,000 $83,177 2023
Edina Education Fund MN$448,216 Executive Director $60,008 $57,386 2025
Cobalt Community Research MI$438,520 President/ce $140,000 $143,551 2024
Derry Preschool Inc PA$450,059 Treasurer $55,000 $53,082 2025
Duxbury Student Union Association MA$438,132 Executive Director $94,389 $86,749 2023
Pupusas For Education NC$437,399 Executive Dir. $2,760 $2,833 2024
Business History Conference DE$451,653 Secretary $20,000 $19,454 2024
Usa Homestays Inc IN$436,143 President $88,000 $94,912 2023
Daniel Academy Atlanta GA$435,866 Ceodirector $22,100 $22,075 2024
Colorado Agricultural Leadership CO$435,088 Ceo $48,000 $45,723 2024
Empire 8 NY$453,359 Commissioner $181,158 $162,621 2024
House Of Champions OH$434,760 President And Executive Director $35,000 $35,877 2025
Reaching Higher New Hampshire Inc NH$434,231 Executive Director $115,995 $109,543 2023
Mychild'scancer Inc NJ$454,068 President / Secretary / Executive Director $26,000 $23,742 2023
Abundant Education CA$433,979 Ceo $98,500 $84,494 2024
Botanical Bus CA$455,172 Exec Direc/ Board Pres $74,880 $66,130 2023
Partners In Change Inc GA$455,719 Ceo, Vice Board Chair $5,000 $5,142 2023
Jackson Heart Foundation MS$432,432 Executive Director $42,500 $48,411 2023
Two Bikes TN$432,119 Director $36,699 $38,322 2024
Spirit Of Youth AK$457,289 Executive Dir. $88,833 $84,369 2024
Vermont Energy Education Program Inc VT$457,395 Executive Director $74,504 $74,496 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to NC 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 NC 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 default40th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)39th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted0th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted97th

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 (Dr Justine Reel) 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 423 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $54,419 is reasonable (approximately the 40th 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.