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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Bayan

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 854069163
MI · NTEE B90
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Mahdi Cherri, Executive Director / CEO ($18,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 337 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 18th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

337 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 337 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$10 total compensation of comparable organizations → $222,514 $18,000
$10,89610th
$23,38125th
$48,567Median
$70,97775th
$93,22490th
$18,000This org · 18th
p10$10,896
p25$23,381
p50$48,567
p75$70,977
p90$93,224
$18,000

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 MI 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
Doc Smith Legacy Foundation CA$216,583 Board Director/executive Director $55,247 $47,584 2023
Miami Dade Urban Debate League FL$217,220 Program Directo $45,000 $40,957 2024
Africa Classroom Connection MN$217,595 Secretary/executive Director $40,517 $38,788 2024
Excel By 5 Inc MS$217,610 Executive Di $97,911 $108,770 2023
National Bible Bowl FL$218,089 Executive Director $21,538 $20,182 2023
Teachers As Scholars Inc MA$218,356 Director $75,800 $64,291 2025
Democrashe CA$214,948 Executive Director $70,000 $58,561 2024
Project Rock South Inc FL$214,815 Program Director $46,416 $42,245 2024
Elevate West Alabama AL$218,833 Executive Director $76,249 $77,751 2025
Create Inc TN$218,914 President $33,000 $33,606 2024
Common Ground Collaborative Foundation NJ$214,456 President $58,813 $50,874 2024
Lighthouse Academies Inc FL$218,951 Ceo $145,913 $132,802 2024
Futuro Inc TN$219,010 Executive Officer $70,000 $71,286 2024
Epic Christian Alliance NH$214,252 President/teacher $1,560 $1,396 2024
Hodos Institute WA$219,466 President, Board Member $96,500 $86,177 2023
Learning Environments Action Research TX$219,583 Executive Director (Thru 10/31/24) $54,319 $52,642 2024
Camp Sweet Life Adventures Inc MN$219,685 Exec Director/key Ee $36,750 $36,220 2023
Spectrum Education Inc FL$212,961 President $77,375 $70,422 2024
Central Jersey Rider Training Inc NJ$220,807 Executive Director $47,600 $42,391 2023
Economics Arkansas Foundation AR$220,831 Executive Director $17,065 $18,584 2024
Green Works In Kansas City MO$212,460 President $110,401 $113,287 2024
Foundation Of Hope Inc MD$212,430 Executive Director $117,879 $106,771 2024
Leader's Edge Inc OH$212,360 Treasurer/secretary $18,000 $18,471 2024
Community Campus VT$221,131 Director $59,510 $58,031 2024
New Day Ministries Inc KY$221,206 Executive Director $82,167 $88,053 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MI 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 MI 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 default18th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)17th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted22nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted16th

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 (Mahdi Cherri) 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 337 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B90), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $18,000 is reasonable (approximately the 18th 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.