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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Gardenview Montessori School

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 562460500
WA · NTEE B24
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Kelda Adair, Executive Director / CEO ($54,819) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 114 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 68th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

114 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 114 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,885 total compensation of comparable organizations → $183,388 $54,819
$13,53210th
$30,24625th
$46,342Median
$61,44275th
$78,93690th
$54,819This org · 68th
p10$13,532
p25$30,246
p50$46,342
p75$61,442
p90$78,936
$54,819

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 WA 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
Rochester Classical Academy NY$313,821 Head Of School $50,000 $51,955 2023
Big Leaf Montessori WA$314,984 Head Of Scho $35,395 $36,440 2023
Birch School Inc NY$311,558 Executive Di $62,250 $62,829 2024
Reach Academy Inc FL$317,631 Director $55,814 $57,054 2025
Mercy Prepratory Academy TX$319,962 Founder $20,833 $23,964 2023
Trinity Classical Academy MS$307,601 Head Of School $8,167 $10,459 2023
Aurora School VT$322,056 President $38,136 $41,768 2025
Great River Montessori Inc WI$322,872 Secretary Co-founder $55,328 $66,445 2023
Maranatha Academy Inc WI$323,010 Administratortrustee $32,011 $37,340 2024
Kingston Montessori Academy TX$303,350 President $35,000 $40,260 2023
Quality Education Institute Of Durham Inc Q E I D NC$302,989 Principal $36,000 $41,547 2024
Down To Earth Nonprofit OR$326,089 Executive Director $48,583 $50,393 2024
St Sophia Classical Academy Foundation OK$302,320 President $4,553 $5,456 2025
Cambria School Of Excellence Inc NY$327,723 Director $24,000 $24,223 2024
The Learning Well WA$300,447 Director Of Education $31,717 $32,654 2023
Cape Cod Christian Academy Inc MA$297,994 Executive Di $47,400 $47,575 2024
Mid Cities Christian Academy TX$294,632 Director $42,000 $48,312 2023
Summit Academy Of Southwest Ohio Inc OH$335,504 Administrator $48,250 $57,080 2024
Mysa School Inc DC$337,850 President $192,053 $183,388 2025
Magnolia Montessori KY$290,390 President $26,308 $31,570 2024
Copeland Run Academy PA$288,066 Director $41,538 $46,267 2024
Phoenix Learning Academy FL$341,934 Director $23,181 $24,323 2024
Brite Bringing Relief International FL$285,994 Trustee $16,154 $16,950 2024
Seton Foundation NH$344,088 Trustee/teacher $42,273 $44,886 2023
Bloom Community School Inc IL$280,544 Board Member $62,738 $68,891 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to WA 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 WA 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 default68th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)74th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted69th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted67th

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 (Kelda Adair) 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 114 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B24), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $54,819 is reasonable (approximately the 68th 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.