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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The College Of Exploration

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 541596412
VA · NTEE B99
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Peter Tuddenham, Executive Director / CEO ($8,043) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 55 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 20th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Peter Tuddenham — reported title “President”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

55 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 55 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$782 total compensation of comparable organizations → $104,594 $8,043
$2,79010th
$12,00025th
$24,150Median
$47,26375th
$70,95990th
$8,043This org · 20th
p10$2,790
p25$12,000
p50$24,150
p75$47,263
p90$70,959
$8,043

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 VA 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
Secular Communities For Arizona Inc AZ$87,047 Executive Director $70,833 $68,529 2024
Gonzaga University Telecommunications Association WA$88,421 President $52,736 $46,273 2025
Continuing Medical Education Institute MN$89,386 President/director $1,500 $1,535 2023
Empowerment Media Inc FL$85,286 Ceo $21,996 $20,787 2024
Russian School Of Austin TX$90,867 President $1,804 $1,869 2023
Midwest Institute For International MI$91,018 Director $35,970 $36,386 2025
American University Of Sovereign Nations Inc AZ$91,158 President $54,600 $54,384 2023
California Association Of Realtors CA$91,525 Treasurer $56,565 $49,136 2024
Lavaca Historical Museum TX$83,283 Treasurer $6,133 $6,012 2025
The My Hero Project Inc CA$93,087 President & Executive Dire $36,000 $31,272 2024
California Psychology Internship Council CA$82,024 Executive Director $53,750 $48,069 2023
Contemporary Chinese School Of Az AZ$94,063 Director $4,187 $4,170 2023
Homeschoolers United In The Big Bend Incorporated FL$81,053 President & Treasurer $15,061 $14,233 2024
Slate Of Mind NC$95,180 Executive Director $78,836 $81,945 2024
Neohumanist College Of Asheville NC$78,689 President $52,500 $54,571 2024
Sskc Educational Support Inc MO$100,000 Ceo & President/secretary $66,164 $72,579 2023
Duranno Father School Usa WA$100,508 President $12,000 $10,808 2024
Bangor Area School District PA$101,453 Ex Director $11,528 $11,564 2024
Kindred Spirits Canine Educationcenter CA$73,648 Executive Director $62,400 $55,805 2023
Acnpe NY$72,695 Executive Director $55,000 $49,996 2024
The Minority Scholars Program MD$72,635 President $3,628 $3,412 2024
Maryland Bar Foundation Inc MD$102,803 Director $15,561 $15,067 2023
Cohort Sistas Inc DE$72,436 Executive Director $10,000 $9,596 2025
Children And Teachers Foundation Of The IL$103,771 President $41,706 $42,465 2023
Minnesota News Media Institute Inc MN$71,376 Executive Director $12,816 $12,739 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to VA 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 VA 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 default20th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)20th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted35th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted18th

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 (Peter Tuddenham) 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 55 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $8,043 is reasonable (approximately the 20th 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.