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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Vocalessence

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 411363849
MN · NTEE A680
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 10, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Mary Ann Aufderheide, Executive Director / CEO ($168,680) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 67 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 93rd percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Mary Ann Aufderheide — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ENDING 6/17/24”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

67 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 67 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,673 total compensation of comparable organizations → $276,490 $168,680
$54,55310th
$81,09625th
$109,236Median
$128,86175th
$161,19890th
$168,680This org · 93rd
p10$54,553
p25$81,096
p50$109,236
p75$128,861
p90$161,198
$168,680

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 MN 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
Detroit Chamber Winds Inc MI$1,808,709 President $94,009 $98,200 2024
The Musicians Hall Of Fame And Museum TN$1,803,524 Executive Dir. $200,000 $212,757 2024
Villa Musica CA$1,797,656 Executive Di $109,174 $95,406 2024
Youth On Record CO$1,845,370 Executive Di $167,366 $162,414 2024
Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra FL$1,849,006 Executive Director $80,299 $78,597 2023
🔒 62 more comparable organizations — included in the purchased report

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MN 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 MN 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 default93rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)88th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted91st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted90th

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:

Ready-to-adopt board minutes — executive compensation

🔒 The complete minutes language — three numbered resolutions pre-filled with this organization, the 67-organization comparison, the date, and the percentile finding, ready to paste into your minutes — is included in the purchased report.

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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 10, 2026.