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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Washington State Academy Of Sciences

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 680668369
WA · NTEE U99
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Donna Riordan, Executive Director / CEO ($9,962) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 94 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 5th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

94 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 94 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,800 total compensation of comparable organizations → $327,697 $9,962
$12,60410th
$28,27925th
$53,404Median
$99,15575th
$130,13090th
$9,962This org · 5th
p10$12,604
p25$28,279
p50$53,404
p75$99,155
p90$130,130
$9,962

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
Metaverse Standards Forum Inc OR$220,420 Executive Director $54,360 $58,051 2023
Octo WA$215,773 Director And President $110,000 $110,000 2024
Tek Collaborative Inc MA$221,205 President $95,250 $98,426 2023
Median Foundation CA$221,309 Director, Secretary $31,950 $31,725 2023
Rocky Mtn Mathematics Consortium I AZ$222,354 President $105,194 $112,998 2024
The Lawn Institute Foundation IL$223,122 Executive Director $10,775 $12,181 2023
At The Epicenter CO$223,582 Diretor $4,500 $4,962 2023
Talkstem TX$213,328 Ceo $53,505 $59,780 2024
American Technical Education Association MN$224,689 Executive Dir. $98,108 $108,278 2024
Native Skywatchers Incorporated MN$212,233 Director $101,409 $115,226 2023
Council Of Professional Associations On DC$211,529 Executive Director $190,928 $187,137 2024
Sarah Mack Scicomm Inc PA$227,239 Executive Director $118,065 $131,506 2024
Biosphere Foundation CA$208,578 President $20,000 $19,290 2024
Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network TX$207,480 Executive Director $88,500 $98,880 2024
International Microwave Power Institute VA$206,535 Executive Director $47,754 $53,022 2023
Klamath Outdoor Science School OR$230,487 Assistant Executive Director $56,293 $60,115 2023
Riseup Labs WA$231,709 Treasurer $13,202 $13,592 2023
Institute For Broadening Participation ME$203,434 Executive Director $69,739 $80,302 2023
University Consortium For Geographic Info Science VA$202,880 Executive Director $44,363 $47,843 2024
Fresh Pond Research Institute Inc MA$234,990 President $57,000 $57,211 2024
Advanced Heliophysics CA$235,524 President Ceo $122,018 $121,159 2023
P3 Exhibits Corporation CA$201,421 Director $25,501 $24,595 2024
Mississippi Engineering Society MS$237,479 Executive Director $48,126 $59,868 2024
The Plastic Ocean Project Inc NC$237,608 Executive Director $7,666 $8,847 2024
Northern Research Technical Assistance Center CO$237,609 President $15,019 $16,561 2023

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 default5th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)7th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted17th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted5th

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 (Donna Riordan) 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 94 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (U), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $9,962 is reasonable (approximately the 5th 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.