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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Acorn School Of Charleston

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 811282931
SC · NTEE B24
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Kristen Bratten, Executive Director / CEO ($90,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 125 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 97th percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Kristen Bratten — reported title “ADMINISTRATOR”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

125 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 125 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,617 total compensation of comparable organizations → $157,383 $90,000
$20,82210th
$32,04525th
$43,270Median
$55,21975th
$72,32290th
$90,000This org · 97th
p10$20,822
p25$32,045
p50$43,270
p75$55,219
p90$72,322
$90,000

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 SC 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
Al Judiy Academy CA$377,997 Head Of School $48,127 $39,835 2024
Crossroads Christian Academy TN$377,701 Headmaster $15,000 $15,114 2024
The Grove School AL$380,659 President $58,500 $60,580 2024
Platt Park Children's Center CO$375,367 Director $58,167 $52,085 2025
Creekside Montessori AZ$382,172 Director $54,519 $51,743 2023
Sharon School Of Excellence FL$374,801 Ceo $162,332 $150,495 2023
Redeemer Classical School Inc IN$382,827 President And Headmaster $53,750 $52,933 2025
Tears Inc OR$382,971 Executive Director $74,725 $66,517 2024
Abadie Academy Inc FL$386,087 Founder/director $96,000 $89,000 2023
Excellent Covenant Christian TX$388,738 Secretary/treasurer $31,870 $31,461 2023
The Trinity School Of Cartersville Inc GA$368,288 Director $38,000 $35,680 2025
Philadelphia School Of Democracy PA$389,461 Vice Preside $58,590 $54,563 2025
Shumway Academy Ltd ID$390,670 Director $53,083 $55,727 2023
Bright Academy AL$390,922 Director/pre $42,000 $42,372 2025
The Hampton School NC$391,351 Director $68,927 $68,268 2024
Christ The King Christian Academy NC$393,223 Headmaster $33,700 $32,517 2025
Harmony Christian Academy NJ$395,130 Director $52,523 $44,951 2024
Living Wisdom School Of Nevada City CA$395,383 Director $31,606 $26,161 2024
Round Grove Christian Academy MO$398,060 Administrator $32,555 $33,051 2024
Woodland Community School Inc NH$404,065 Executive Dir. $67,691 $58,368 2025
Operation Rebirth Inc OH$352,625 Exec Directo $35,000 $36,584 2023
Simba Educational Ministries SD$407,286 President $8,400 $9,149 2023
Cottage Forest School MI$349,440 Head Of School $15,413 $14,857 2025
International School Of Greenville SC$348,825 President $22,800 $22,800 2024
Seton Foundation NH$344,088 Trustee/teacher $42,273 $38,521 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to SC 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 SC 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 default97th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)93rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted98th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted96th

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 (Kristen Bratten) 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 125 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B24), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $90,000 is reasonable (approximately the 97th 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.