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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Pacem School Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 743169081
VT · NTEE B20
FY ending 2025-06-30
June 10, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Lexi Shear, Executive Director / CEO ($54,852) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 255 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 64th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Lexi Shear — reported title “HEAD OF SCHOOL”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

255 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 255 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$161 total compensation of comparable organizations → $165,245 $54,852
$8,10910th
$22,18425th
$40,600Median
$68,38675th
$91,74390th
$54,852This org · 64th
p10$8,109
p25$22,184
p50$40,600
p75$68,386
p90$91,743
$54,852

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 VT 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
Erie County Association Of School Boards NY$362,373 Executive Director $69,888 $62,743 2025
Graceview Academy Of St Cloud FL$360,831 Ceo $11,234 $10,762 2024
Grace Christian Academy St Louis MO$360,737 Director $37,440 $40,440 2024
Agia Sophia Academy OR$360,441 Principal $44,460 $43,349 2023
King's Academy TX$360,086 Head Of School $99,146 $104,128 2023
Jewell School AZ$358,641 Officer/trea $35,750 $36,098 2023
Vision 2020 Education Foundation MN$357,509 President/treasurer $14,286 $14,821 2023
Scholars Christian Preschool And Academy Inc FL$355,881 Executive Director $78,000 $74,726 2024
Moorhead Legacy Education Foundation MN$367,977 Executive Director $12,000 $12,093 2024
Titus Christian Prep School Inc KY$368,296 Head Of School $50,000 $54,782 2024
Montessori School Of Peoria IL$368,353 President $48,600 $50,165 2023
Grace Preparatory Academy Of Greater MA$354,941 President $175 $161 2024
Genesis Ministries FL$354,766 President $33,000 $31,615 2024
Saint Ambrose Academy PA$369,386 President And Treasurer $45,000 $44,585 2025
In Situ Explorers NC$369,440 President $69,872 $73,626 2024
The Helping House TX$370,185 Teacher/director $73,327 $77,012 2023
Thomasville Antiques Show Foundation Inc GA$353,321 Executive Director $27,250 $28,767 2023
Boise Classical Academy Inc ID$352,443 President $32,278 $36,052 2023
Deep Roots School Inc NJ$351,162 Treasurer $47,981 $42,562 2025
Journey School Of Houston TX$350,685 Clinical Director Vice Chair $44,155 $45,043 2024
Lincoln Heights Tutorial Program CA$350,503 Exec. Director $75,000 $66,045 2024
Midwest Christian Montessori Academy IL$373,593 School Director/non-officer $79,348 $79,553 2024
Creating Hope Inc OH$349,714 Director $4,800 $5,185 2024
Valor Classical Christian Academy Inc WI$349,030 34 Grade Teacher $9,120 $9,463 2025
Interlocking Ministries Inc NC$348,910 Executive Di $87,078 $91,757 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to VT cost of living and 2025 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 VT 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 default64th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)63rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted65th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted62nd

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 (Lexi Shear) 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 10, 2026, comparing compensation against 255 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $54,852 is reasonable (approximately the 64th 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 10, 2026.