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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Children's Museum

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 721115596
LA · NTEE A520
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Allyson Montgomery, Executive Director / CEO ($58,235) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 16 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 81st percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Allyson Montgomery — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

16 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 16 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$7,528 total compensation of comparable organizations → $74,911 $58,235
$11,22310th
$21,66625th
$38,675Median
$51,46675th
$61,79390th
$58,235This org · 81st
p10$11,223
p25$21,666
p50$38,675
p75$51,466
p90$61,793
$58,235

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 LA 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
Amuse'um Columbia Childrens Museum TN$235,294 Executive Di $28,000 $25,962 2024
Mighty Childrens Museum OH$229,820 Director $13,980 $13,061 2024
Children's Museumlab Advancement PA$240,009 Treasurer $35,562 $31,283 2024
Neighborhood North Museum Of Play PA$219,690 Executive Director $51,897 $47,000 2023
Chesapeake Childrens Museum MD$216,428 President $19,500 $17,235 2022
Tag Children's Museum Of St Augustine FL$256,850 Executive Director $90,400 $74,911 2024
Habitot Childrens Museum CA$263,010 Executive Dir. $9,600 $7,528 2023
The Urban Educational Project-jersey Explorer Children's Museum NJ$201,068 Executive Dir $58,449 $46,033 2024
Childrens Museum Of Yuma County Inc AZ$291,227 Ceo $54,130 $47,277 2023
Childrens Museum Of The Brazos Valley TX$176,028 Executive Dir. $35,490 $31,316 2024
Sandcastles A Lake Michigan Childrens Museum MI$295,915 Executive Director $64,594 $60,548 2023
Des Moines Childrens Museum IA$306,163 Current Exc Dir $23,274 $23,143 2023
Kids Discovery Factory Inc IN$337,260 Executive Director $53,993 $51,709 2023
Scioto County Childrens Museum Inc OH$339,664 Director $67,472 $63,037 2024
Aha A Hands On Adventure OH$344,152 Executive Di $55,000 $51,385 2024
Hands On Childrens Museum Inc FL$345,304 Director $11,000 $9,385 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to LA 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 LA 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 default81st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)75th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted88th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted75th

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 (Allyson Montgomery) 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 16 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A52), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $58,235 is reasonable (approximately the 81st 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.