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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Arts Southeast Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 861693298
GA · NTEE A20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Emily Earl, Executive Director / CEO ($39,077) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 325 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 38th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Emily Earl — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

325 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 325 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$280 total compensation of comparable organizations → $150,532 $39,077
$10,96410th
$28,18625th
$49,151Median
$68,37175th
$82,67190th
$39,077This org · 38th
p10$10,964
p25$28,186
p50$49,151
p75$68,371
p90$82,671
$39,077

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 GA 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
La Raza Historical Society Of Santa Clara Valley CA$325,923 Director $12,000 $10,610 2023
Tofte Lake Center Inc MN$323,257 Executive Di $36,805 $36,169 2024
Raga Massive Inc NY$323,178 Executive Director $17,550 $16,238 2023
Ancient Art Archive TN$327,112 Director $75,000 $78,405 2024
North Topeka Arts District Inc KS$327,696 Former Ed $76,877 $82,600 2024
Tonatiuh-danzantes Del Quinto Sol CA$320,656 Artistic Director $20,874 $18,456 2023
Jack Arts Inc NY$329,150 Co-director $68,896 $63,746 2023
4c Lab CA$331,133 Executive Artistic Director $65,611 $58,011 2023
Opening Night Theater Inc CA$331,424 Director $54,000 $46,375 2024
The Leela Institute CA$331,609 Ceo $85,750 $73,641 2024
Darke County Center For The Arts OH$318,073 Executive Di $31,669 $33,359 2024
Make Studio Art Program Inc MD$331,736 Studio Manager $36,312 $34,761 2023
Tapestry Folkdance Center MN$317,726 Executive Director $52,000 $51,102 2024
Ma's House & Bipoc Art Studio Inc NY$317,270 President $26,125 $23,479 2024
Ann Arbor Street Art Fair Inc MI$332,538 Executive Director $76,981 $81,358 2023
Arts Mission Oak Cliff TX$317,052 Exec. Dir./p $36,000 $35,815 2024
Aguilas CA$333,217 Executive Di $41,845 $35,936 2024
Art Sandy Springs Inc GA$316,160 Treasurer $24,013 $23,394 2025
San Anto Cultural Arts TX$333,818 Executive Dir. $61,799 $61,481 2024
Masa Center MI$315,795 President $33,334 $33,337 2025
The Saco River Theatre ME$315,634 President/executive Dir. $38,000 $38,961 2023
Grass Roots Cultural And Performing MA$315,357 Executive Di $58,000 $53,366 2023
Mill City Farmers Market Charitable Fund MN$314,946 Executive Director $7,953 $7,816 2024
Johnson County Ctr For The Arts TN$314,896 Executive Director $3,692 $3,860 2024
Dorill Initiative Inc NY$314,146 Executive Director $9,149 $8,465 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to GA 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 GA 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 default38th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)34th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted38th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted36th

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 (Emily Earl) 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 325 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $39,077 is reasonable (approximately the 38th 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.