Compensation Comparability

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Melissa Strickland, Executive Director / CEO ($28,444) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 21 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 14^th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

How comparable organizations were selected

Distribution of comparable compensation

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 FL cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

Organization	State	Total revenue	Total comp	Source
Leadership Institute Of Seattle	WA	$324,094	$115,393	990
Jesse C Fletcher Seminary	TX	$295,607	$8,311	990
Missional Training Center	AZ	$292,172	$63,629	990
South Central Wisconsin Area Health	WI	$337,992	$107,659	990
Graduate Business Curriculum	MN	$353,980	$150,225	990
Leadership Southern Maryland Inc	MD	$260,332	$81,647	990
Research Institute For Housing America	DC	$253,717	$52,668	990
Toyota Technological Institute At Chicago	IL	$385,536	$529,537	990
Cincinnati Psychoanalytic Institute	OH	$387,260	$91,851	990
Oregon Psychoanalytic Center	OR	$219,306	$91,537	990
Henry Appenzeller University	CA	$215,950	$1,554	990
Heidelberg Theological Seminary	SD	$417,954	$116,081	990
America Chinese Evangelical Seminary	CA	$420,606	$31,585	990
Maitripa College	OR	$421,618	$82,374	990
Nwa Industries For Education	AR	$453,082	$72,914	990
Bridges Graduate School Of Cognitive Diversity In Education	CA	$454,095	$23,623	990
Christ Our Redeemer Seminary Inc	AL	$459,218	$69,300	990
Pillar Seminary	NE	$460,914	$71,339	990
Slavic Reformation Society	TX	$461,512	$107,463	990
Wildlife Science Center	MN	$462,983	$66,693	990
Academy For The Love Of	NM	$464,201	$228,965	990

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 FL 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:

Basis	Subject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default	14^th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)	14^th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted	19^th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted	10^th

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

The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Melissa Strickland) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
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 21 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B50), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
The authorized body determined that total compensation of $28,444 is reasonable (approximately the 14^th percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].