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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Pearl Foundation Of The

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 872509430
TN · NTEE T31
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Katherine Birkbeck, Executive Director / CEO ($55,650) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 39 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 59th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

39 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 39 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,202 total compensation of comparable organizations → $124,720 $55,650
$8,28910th
$28,42425th
$44,565Median
$71,06975th
$89,27690th
$55,650This org · 59th
p10$8,289
p25$28,424
p50$44,565
p75$71,069
p90$89,276
$55,650

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 TN 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
Hawaii Va Foundation HI$225,981 Board Chair/ $4,800 $4,088 2024
The Surety Foundation Inc DC$229,532 Sfaa Foundation Liaison $57,126 $47,691 2024
Olivia Hospital & Clinic Foundation MN$224,257 Director & President $66,188 $64,057 2023
Mac Foundation MT$223,291 Cfo $118,130 $124,720 2023
The Freedom To Help Foundation Inc MD$232,308 Executive Director $1,312 $1,202 2023
Buffalo Renaissance Foundation Inc NY$221,606 Executive Director $36,000 $31,862 2023
Middletown Community Foundation Inc PA$235,127 Executive Di $5,000 $4,884 2023
Ozarks Charitable Real Estate Foundation MO$218,166 Director/president & Ceo End 02/24 $37,216 $37,500 2024
Pv Schools Education Foundation AZ$216,826 Executive Director $55,000 $50,321 2024
Stillwater Community Healthcare MT$241,012 Ceo $43,294 $44,398 2024
Port Washington Education Foundation NY$210,140 Vice President $10,000 $8,850 2023
Chasdei Eliyahu PA$208,638 Treasurer $12,000 $11,385 2024
Nehemiah Community Foundation CA$205,259 Coo $85,180 $72,042 2023
United Way Of Adams County Inc PA$250,888 Executive Dir. $71,169 $67,519 2024
Israel America Foundation Inc NY$202,951 Executive Direc $79,200 $70,096 2023
Rochelle Area Community Foundation IL$252,515 Executive Di $92,084 $86,125 2024
Bettendorf Community Schools Foundation IA$201,204 Administration $41,128 $42,842 2024
Real Situations Inc OH$255,499 Sports/program Administrator $6,000 $6,046 2024
Tustin Community Foundation CA$197,975 Executive Director $73,710 $62,341 2023
Greater Columbus Community Helping OH$193,012 Executive Di $85,000 $85,648 2024
Carol Ann Lee Memorial Trust GA$265,062 Former Trustee $30,847 $30,379 2023
Torah Synagogue Foundation NY$189,200 Treasurer $38,000 $31,825 2025
Visit Champaign County Foundation IL$266,372 Secretary $125,888 $121,219 2023
Together Empowered Inc GA$268,542 Clinical Director $11,310 $10,539 2025
Swift Eagle Charitable Foundation CO$274,262 Executive Dir. $32,000 $30,053 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to TN 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 TN 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 default59th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)56th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted62nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted38th

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 (Katherine Birkbeck) 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 39 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (T31), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $55,650 is reasonable (approximately the 59th 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.