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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Upward Bound Study Center Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 330431802
CA · NTEE Z99Z
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Qiqin Li, Executive Director / CEO ($35,382) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 35 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 43rd percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Qiqin Li — reported title “Education Coordinator”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

35 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 35 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,185 total compensation of comparable organizations → $180,827 $35,382
$13,52010th
$26,93925th
$43,669Median
$73,44575th
$102,19790th
$35,382This org · 43rd
p10$13,520
p25$26,939
p50$43,669
p75$73,445
p90$102,197
$35,382

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
Peace Grove Inc CA$244,008 President $43,669 $43,669 2023
Yucaipa Swim Team Inc CA$235,834 Executive Di $58,000 $56,336 2024
Economic Development Corporation CA$235,716 Executive Director $110,027 $106,870 2024
Community Vitalization Council CA$248,526 President $26,600 $25,837 2024
South Coast Chorale Inc CA$248,605 Executive Director $11,201 $11,201 2023
Danville Girls Chorus CA$249,208 Artistic Dir $35,695 $34,671 2024
Alliance For Education Solutions Inc CA$232,064 Executive Director $32,500 $32,500 2023
Stanislaus Partners In Education CA$231,523 Executive Director $50,610 $49,158 2024
The Foundation Of The American CA$226,662 Executive Director $32,726 $31,787 2024
Health Career Collaborative Inc CA$217,900 Ceo $186,168 $180,827 2024
Earth Images Foundation CA$216,823 President And Video Producer $58,387 $56,712 2024
Garagiste Events Inc CA$271,614 President $29,500 $28,654 2024
Medical Staff Of Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital CA$206,945 Chief Of Staff-santa Barbara $96,300 $93,537 2024
Music Mends Minds Inc CA$278,012 Executive Director $98,000 $95,188 2024
Eagles Wings Ministries CA$204,597 Executive Director And Chairm $42,500 $42,500 2023
Love Inc Sacramento CA$202,859 Director $75,920 $75,920 2023
Institute For Fisheries Resources CA$200,747 Executive Director $17,500 $16,998 2024
Arc San Diego Foundation CA$200,387 Ceo $28,869 $28,041 2024
Storeydreams Foundation Inc CA$284,256 President $153,377 $153,377 2023
Cal-earth Inc CA$184,753 Secretary $21,000 $20,398 2024
Poway Valley Water Polo Club Inc CA$301,640 President $3,749 $3,641 2024
Cpad Chinese Parents CA$181,704 Secretary $1,220 $1,185 2024
Community Foundation Land Trust CA$181,270 President $32,789 $32,789 2023
Padre Pio Academy CA$302,702 Principal $20,700 $20,700 2023
Colorado Park Housing Corporation CA$306,194 President & Ceo $65,738 $65,738 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 default43rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)40th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted51st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted29th

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 (Qiqin Li) 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 35 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (Z99) + CA + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $35,382 is reasonable (approximately the 43rd 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.