Executive Director / CEO
This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Melissa Axelrod, Executive Director / CEO ($66,354) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 100 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.
Compensation sits at approximately the 48th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range
Benchmarked executive: Melissa Axelrod — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.
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 VT cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.
| Organization | State | Revenue | Matched title | Comp (reported) | Comp (adjusted) | FY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Bunker Sands Wetland Center Inc | TX | $481,271 | Executive Dir. | $64,126 | $65,612 | 2023 |
| Sol Nation Inc | NC | $471,247 | Executive Director | $103,833 | $106,592 | 2024 |
| International Association For Near-death | NC | $470,449 | Executive Dir. | $13,740 | $14,105 | 2024 |
| Boulder Outdoor Survival School | UT | $468,884 | Executive Dir. | $54,998 | $55,924 | 2024 |
| Learning Outside Inc | NC | $484,982 | Executive Di | $70,355 | $72,224 | 2024 |
| Blue Ridge Discovery Center Inc | VA | $461,990 | Executive Di | $65,423 | $62,759 | 2024 |
| Tacoma Tree Foundation | WA | $459,145 | Executive Director | $80,639 | $73,847 | 2023 |
| Louisville Nature Center Inc | KY | $458,209 | Executive Director | $78,440 | $83,727 | 2024 |
| Womens Environmental Institute At Amador Hill | MN | $457,413 | Director Of Operations | $6,900 | $6,774 | 2024 |
| Work On Climate | CA | $499,810 | Executive Director | $27,963 | $23,990 | 2024 |
| Institute For Earth Education | WV | $452,778 | International Chair | $7,200 | $7,974 | 2023 |
| Tikkun Hayam-repair The Sea Inc | FL | $501,076 | Chief Executive Officer | $150,000 | $140,000 | 2024 |
| Crossroads At Big Creek Inc | WI | $502,124 | Executive Di | $85,144 | $88,345 | 2024 |
| Minnesota Soil Health Coalition | MN | $502,268 | Executive Dir. | $131,733 | $129,323 | 2024 |
| 350 Vermont Inc | VT | $504,377 | Co-director | $55,276 | $56,909 | 2023 |
| Hartford Land Bank Inc | CT | $507,266 | Executive Director - Until 01/2024 | $161,807 | $150,729 | 2024 |
| California Clean Energy Committee | CA | $438,983 | President | $66,000 | $58,294 | 2023 |
| Center For Diversity And The Environment | OR | $515,765 | Executive Director | $933,208 | $861,011 | 2024 |
| Cool The Earth Inc | CA | $436,919 | Exec Dir/boa | $55,000 | $47,185 | 2024 |
| Eco-justice Center Inc | WI | $436,056 | Executive Director | $58,700 | $60,907 | 2024 |
| Earth Day New York Inc | NY | $433,796 | Executive Di | $109,419 | $101,135 | 2023 |
| Ecology In Classrooms And Outdoors | OR | $432,173 | Executive Director | $93,836 | $89,134 | 2023 |
| Seaworthy Foundation Inc | FL | $431,973 | Founder Ceo | $80,000 | $74,667 | 2024 |
| 350 Bay Area | CA | $522,185 | Executive Director/secretary | $87,037 | $74,669 | 2024 |
| Wsbz Farms | AR | $429,747 | Executive Dir. | $53,550 | $61,569 | 2023 |
Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to VT cost of living and 2024 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.
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 VT 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.
Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:
| Basis | Subject percentile |
|---|---|
| Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default | 48th |
| Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments) | 48th |
| Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted | 48th |
| All sources (D + E + F), adjusted | 47th |
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.
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
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.