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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Sterling Community Center Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 920154977
AK · NTEE P99Z
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Michelle Hartley, Executive Director / CEO ($532) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 19 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 0th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

19 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 19 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,282 total compensation of comparable organizations → $109,883 $532
$9,87910th
$15,54625th
$28,559Median
$38,86675th
$71,25890th
$532This org · 0th
p10$9,879
p25$15,546
p50$28,559
p75$38,866
p90$71,258
$532

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 AK 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
Mlife CA$82,885 President $30,713 $28,559 2023
Nursing Foundation Of Pennsylvania PA$90,107 Ceo $1,194 $1,282 2023
Southwest Colorado Accelerator Prog CO$90,333 Executive Di $106,416 $109,883 2023
Pottsville Firemans Relief Trust PA$93,437 Treasurer $1,500 $1,565 2024
Manda Strong Foundation Inc TX$95,458 Executive Director $15,000 $16,158 2023
Fiona Jackson Center For Pregnancy Inc FL$97,152 Exec Director $41,356 $41,838 2023
Indian Center Inc NE$73,913 Acting Executive Director $12,394 $14,355 2023
Masons Mission Foundation Inc NY$104,780 President $15,800 $14,934 2024
Diaper Bank Of Greater Cleveland OH$66,633 Executive Director $26,000 $29,655 2023
Fairmont Area Kinship Inc MN$105,789 Executive Di $22,959 $24,430 2023
Pacific Living Alternatives CA$107,366 President & Ceo $31,801 $28,723 2024
Ten Thousand Villages TN$62,192 Manager $15,644 $16,757 2025
Foundations For Living Inc GA$110,518 Director $47,499 $49,955 2024
Alpha Family Center Of MI$111,253 Executive Di $11,075 $11,957 2024
H2o Missions Inc OH$111,877 Treasurer/se $32,400 $35,894 2024
Vermont Association Of Senior Centers And Meal Providers VT$113,923 Ex. Director $65,810 $69,284 2024
By Their Side Inc MD$121,317 Executive Director $80,943 $79,153 2024
Jb Line Inc MA$125,227 President $35,190 $34,053 2023
Conaxion Inc CA$126,782 President $23,500 $21,852 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to AK 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 AK 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 default0th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)0th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted11th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted0th

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 (Michelle Hartley) 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 19 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (P99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $532 is reasonable (approximately the 0th 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.