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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Cupertino Chinese School

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 770250393
CA · NTEE A74Z
FY ending 2024-08-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Mei Chu Wu, Executive Director / CEO ($9,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 150 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 28th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

How comparable organizations were selected

150 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 150 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$582 total compensation of comparable organizations → $115,727 $9,000
$3,63110th
$8,05325th
$18,956Median
$37,89675th
$60,53190th
$9,000This org · 28th
p10$3,631
p25$8,053
p50$18,956
p75$37,896
p90$60,531
$9,000

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 CA cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
Philadelphia Stories IncPA $45,283$5,774 990
Kosciuszko Polish LanguageMA $45,128$7,285 990
Winter Park University IncFL $45,000$5,830 990
Josephine County Historical SocietyOR $46,070$28,833 990
Far Star Action FundWA $46,140$14,435 990
Delaware Sports Museum AndDE $46,267$26,851 990
1893 Land Run Historical Center IncOK $44,642$15,468 990
Marika Foundation IncorporatedMA $46,320$702 990
Sciart ExchangeTX $46,436$48,654 990
Sauk Prairie Area Historical Society IncWI $44,462$16,834 990
Canton Madison Historical SocietyMS $44,182$5,491 990
Spokane FavsWA $43,979$38,428 990
Alliance Arts CouncilNE $47,151$9,465 990
Oregon Newspapers Foundation IncOR $43,648$25,291 990
Chinkapin Craftstead IncTN $47,401$21,305 990
Chinese Gospel Broadcasting Center IncNY $43,522$66,037 990
Potters House Community DeveloFL $43,271$28,559 990
The H B Playwrights Foundation IncNY $47,703$6,535 990
Broadway Sacramento FoundationCA $48,005$31,823 990
Kritya Foundation IncNY $48,114$4,803 990
Encore Slso IncMO $48,216$82,511 990
Goethe House Wisconsin IncWI $42,578$26,010 990
Friends Of Lyndon B Johnson National Historical ParkTX $48,419$26,471 990
Greater Buckeye Lake Historical SocietyOH $42,419$25,256 990
Treasure Caretaker TrainingCO $48,712$26,651 990

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 CA 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 default28th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)31st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted39th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted26th

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 (Mei Chu Wu) 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 150 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (A), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $9,000 is reasonable (approximately the 28th 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). 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.