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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Museum Of Ancient Wonders

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 834577545
CA · NTEE A50
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Alberto Acosta, Executive Director / CEO ($5,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 43 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

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

How comparable organizations were selected

43 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 43 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$216 total compensation of comparable organizations → $376,288 $5,500
$1,25410th
$5,44325th
$15,336Median
$35,46575th
$89,12990th
$5,500This org · 28th
p10$1,254
p25$5,443
p50$15,336
p75$35,465
p90$89,129
$5,500

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.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
Seeds Of Light Foundation OR$19,597 Secretary $41,600 $46,061 2023
International Classical Concerts Of The CA$19,562 President $7,000 $7,000 2024
Network Of Ensemble Theaters Inc OR$20,205 Executive Dir. $83,898 $92,893 2023
University Cultural Center Association MI$18,733 Executive Director $305,767 $376,288 2023
Stephen J Ponzillo Jr Memorial Library MD$20,728 Grand Secretary $9,099 $10,143 2023
North Texas Public Broadcasting TX$18,220 President & Ceo $28,809 $34,359 2023
The New York City Police Museum NY$21,135 Executive D $21,540 $22,541 2024
Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra IA$18,000 Interim Ceo $4,528 $5,742 2024
Streatorland Historical Society Inc IL$17,809 Executive Director $13,470 $15,336 2024
Yankee Air Museum Foundation Inc MI$17,520 Executive Director $135,000 $161,369 2024
Secret Land Arp CA$17,500 Executive Director $4,000 $4,118 2023
Coatesville Cultural Society Inc PA$17,419 President $30,994 $35,794 2024
Contact Collaborations Inc VT$22,079 President $12,250 $14,701 2023
Carmel Mission Foundation Inc CA$22,133 Executive Dir. $56,623 $58,295 2023
Strategic Air & Space Museum Foundation NE$22,156 President/ceo $13,500 $17,312 2023
The Buddhayana Foundation Inc MA$22,435 Treasurer $24,000 $24,976 2024
Menlowe Ballet CA$16,800 Artistic Director $599 $599 2024
Wayne County Historical Society IL$22,599 Director / Curator $4,830 $5,499 2024
Sfte Inc NM$22,897 Presidentdirector $13,670 $17,027 2024
Claude Heater Foundation CA$23,205 Ceodirector $70,000 $72,068 2023
Us-china Language & Culturefoundation CA$23,580 President $580 $580 2024
The City Of Socorro Community Initiative TX$23,642 Executive Director $69,894 $83,359 2023
Whitney Plantation Museum LA$23,809 Executive Director $12,252 $16,085 2023
Dream Out Loud Productions CA$15,043 President $20,000 $20,591 2023
Maryland Cultural And Conference Center MD$24,406 Executive Director, Board $6,920 $7,713 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 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)30th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted51st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted28th

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 (Alberto Acosta) 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 43 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (A), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $5,500 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). 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.