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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

National Storytelling Membership Association Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 621760203
MO · NTEE A200
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Dorothy Cleveland, Executive Director / CEO ($11,598) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 149 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 16th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Dorothy Cleveland — reported title “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

149 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 149 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$879 total compensation of comparable organizations → $270,542 $11,598
$5,80510th
$19,77225th
$34,032Median
$54,26975th
$66,50390th
$11,598This org · 16th
p10$5,805
p25$19,772
p50$34,032
p75$54,269
p90$66,503
$11,598

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 MO 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
Waterloo Arts OH$161,096 Executive Di $43,333 $43,333 2024
Artseed CA$165,991 Exec Dir/secty $39,874 $32,508 2024
Fremont Center For The Arts CO$159,801 Executive Director $13,884 $12,941 2023
Viva Voices Choral Organization Inc KY$166,955 President $49,250 $48,670 2025
City College Center For NY$167,400 Managing Director $71,969 $61,401 2024
Classic Planning Instit ME$167,461 Social Media $9,515 $8,996 2024
Oklahoma Mural Syndicate OK$158,724 President $3,998 $4,279 2023
Center For Arts & Learning Inc VT$168,343 Executive Director $28,411 $27,797 2023
Ne Sculpture Gallery Factory MN$168,662 Secretary $59,833 $55,820 2024
Appalachian Arts Craft Center Inc TN$168,701 Executive Director $48,115 $47,751 2024
Tyler Park Center For The Arts Inc PA$157,663 Executive Director $15,000 $14,123 2024
Lewistown Art Center MT$157,562 Executive Di $31,346 $32,844 2023
Walking Shadow Theatre Company MN$169,065 Executive Director $6,500 $5,907 2025
Frank Theatre MN$156,939 Secretary $60,000 $55,976 2024
Fundacion Nacional Para La Cultura Popular PR$169,885 Administratror $9,000 $9,000 2024
West Nebraska Arts Center NE$155,385 Executive Di $43,358 $44,029 2024
88 International Corp NY$171,603 President $23,650 $20,177 2024
Lightbox Film Center PA$153,749 Board Director $21,000 $19,772 2024
Snap Cultural Events Inc FL$173,240 President $33,660 $30,737 2023
Zgd Inc NY$173,301 Director $1,000 $879 2023
Creative Downtown Appleton Inc WI$175,874 Executive Director $3,167 $3,123 2024
Bruce Lee Foundation Inc CA$149,396 Executive Director $100,248 $84,144 2023
District One Community Education PA$148,914 Executive Di $35,000 $32,105 2025
Granary Art Center UT$146,593 Executive Director $60,000 $56,484 2025
Carl Cherry Foundation CA$180,011 Executive Director $46,501 $37,911 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MO 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 MO 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 default16th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)16th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted17th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted14th

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 (Dorothy Cleveland) 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 149 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $11,598 is reasonable (approximately the 16th 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.