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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Heartland Christian Academy Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 411382641
MN · NTEE B24Z
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 13, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Seth Van Dyke, Executive Director / CEO ($44,752) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 135 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 44th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Seth Van Dyke — reported title “DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

135 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 135 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$161 total compensation of comparable organizations → $174,108 $44,752
$24,30410th
$34,61425th
$47,459Median
$60,36275th
$81,12990th
$44,752This org · 44th
p10$24,304
p25$34,614
p50$47,459
p75$60,362
p90$81,129
$44,752

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
Richmond Primary School VA$467,254 Founder/executive Director $65,976 $66,374 2023
Living Word Christian Academy TX$464,702 Waco, Tx $38,588 $39,064 2024
Weaver Child Development Center OH$464,055 Exec Director/vice President $72,921 $76,149 2025
Wild Oak Independent School NC$470,269 Vp $45,000 $45,843 2025
Masjidullahs New Medina Learning Institute PA$471,177 Secretary $8,085 $8,401 2023
Violeta Montessori School Inc MA$471,218 Head Of School $39,793 $37,257 2023
Carter Christian Academy Inc KY$459,674 Teacher $33,417 $35,398 2025
The Open School CA$459,653 Chairman $47,321 $42,575 2023
Wild Fern Montessori School VA$459,360 Head Of School $48,499 $47,391 2024
All Saints Elementary Of Tipperary Hill NY$475,487 Principal $54,474 $49,816 2024
The Masters Study Inc IN$457,523 Director $1,600 $1,708 2024
Fhl Academy Inc MN$457,508 President $32,048 $32,048 2024
Red Fox Community School Inc VT$477,511 Head Of School $75,000 $76,398 2024
Valley Christian School WY$479,070 Administrator/principal $37,344 $40,470 2024
Mighty Oaks Enrichment Center KS$454,779 President $25,000 $27,333 2024
Realms Of Inquiry UT$448,232 Executive Di $54,021 $55,954 2024
Extraordinary Education Family Learning TX$492,815 Executive Dir. $29,685 $30,051 2024
Ormewood School Inc GA$493,801 Executive Director $58,702 $59,734 2024
Dalton Learning Academy Inc FL$439,244 President $80,250 $76,296 2024
Azalea City Montessori Cooperative AL$439,120 Head Of School $30,000 $33,769 2023
Atx Kids Club TX$438,372 Executive Dir. $87,717 $88,800 2024
Evergreen Garden School WA$437,214 Director $55,725 $51,983 2023
Binyan Yisroel Inc MD$437,133 Executive Dir. $52,699 $51,335 2023
Brighton Academy OR$435,945 Chairman/pre $38,900 $36,559 2024
Cornerstone Christian Academy NJ$435,583 Director $37,392 $33,787 2024

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 default44th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)42nd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted47th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted44th

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 (Seth Van Dyke) 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 13, 2026, comparing compensation against 135 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B24), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $44,752 is reasonable (approximately the 44th 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 13, 2026.