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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Conservatory Of Central Illinois

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 371199216
IL · NTEE A6E0
FY ending 2024-07-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Jo Ellen Devlibiss, Executive Director / CEO ($14,047) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 1295 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 21st percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Jo Ellen Devlibiss — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

1,295 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 1,295 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$21 total compensation of comparable organizations → $291,466 $14,047
$5,37810th
$16,60925th
$34,673Median
$53,87675th
$71,71890th
$14,047This org · 21st
p10$5,378
p25$16,609
p50$34,673
p75$53,876
p90$71,718
$14,047

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 IL 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
Norwalk Historical Society Inc CT$156,068 Executive Dir. $48,000 $45,778 2024
Quakertown Alive PA$155,888 Executive Director $67,022 $67,984 2024
Tubatulabals Of Kern Valley CA$155,709 Chairman $4,840 $4,251 2024
Womens Chorus Of Dallas TX$155,690 General Manager $1,934 $1,917 2025
Warren County Historical Society PA$155,664 Executive Director $39,287 $41,028 2023
Pax Amicus Foundation NJ$155,661 President $12,000 $10,898 2024
C'est Bon Music Inc CA$156,557 Ceo $14,300 $12,560 2024
West Nebraska Arts Center NE$155,385 Executive Di $43,358 $47,435 2024
Zeitgeist Northwest OR$155,341 School Director $5,600 $5,446 2023
Heritage Alliance Of Ne Tn & Sw Va TN$155,315 Director $45,478 $50,061 2023
Westerly Armory Restoration Inc RI$155,312 Treasurer $26,250 $25,603 2024
One Heart Beat Inc GA$156,857 Co-founder & Executive Dir $50,000 $51,138 2024
Frank Theatre MN$156,939 Secretary $60,000 $60,305 2024
Flamenco Denver CO$156,978 Executive Dir. $55,434 $54,067 2024
Stage Left Theater Association WA$155,129 Managing Director $12,000 $10,928 2024
Elios Charitable Foundation CA$155,069 Executive Dir. $58,750 $53,126 2023
Alleghany Jam NC$155,028 Executive Director $53,791 $55,077 2025
South Carolina Cotton Museum Inc SC$155,011 Executive Di $33,692 $36,808 2023
Seasun Theatre Artist Group CA$157,161 Director $6,940 $6,276 2023
California Arts Advocates CA$157,175 Ceo $49,951 $45,169 2023
Silver Reef Foundation Inc UT$157,200 Director $20,350 $21,185 2024
Souls Grown Deep Community GA$154,807 President $222,172 $233,938 2023
Hidalgo Foundation TX$157,430 Pres./exec. Dir $44,083 $44,854 2024
Ascanio's Purse CO$154,704 President $15,000 $15,062 2023
Warbirds Of Glory Museum MI$154,634 President $50,058 $54,108 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to IL 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 IL 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 default21st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)21st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted23rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted20th

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 (Jo Ellen Devlibiss) 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 1295 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (A), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $14,047 is reasonable (approximately the 21st 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.