Compensation Escalation Cycle
Compensation Escalation Cycle
Market
Archetype
Mechanical
Natural
Tier
Priority Review
Trajectory Thumbprint
Compensation Escalation Cycle
What does this mean?
Revenue grows modestly, but top officer compensation grows consistently for 5 years, breaching danger zones. The executive is negotiating aggressive raises against a compliant board.
The Path Forward
The Steward
Re-establishes board supremacy over executive extraction. It freezes compensation and mandates that all future financial rewards be tied strictly to verifiable mission expansion.
The Steward
Institutional Health Scores
5-yr trend: Compensation Escalation Cycle ↓
Overall
22
Score
Governance
42
Score
Financial
5
Score
Program
30
Score
Title
-
Institutions
-
Avg Revenue
-
Risk Profile
Representative Institutions
Institutional Epochs
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Financial Era
Governance Era
Trajectory Era
Compensation Escalation
Historical Performance
| Year | Revenue | Top Comp | Comp % Rev | Score | Phase Label | Outlook | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Hidden | Hidden | — | — | Unknown | — | |
| 2024 | Hidden | Hidden | — | — | Unknown | — | |
| 2023 | — | — | 33.0% | 22 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2022 | — | — | 27.3% | 32 | Critical Intervention Needed | Recovery | |
| 2021 | — | — | 33.8% | 27 | Critical Intervention Needed | Recovery | |
| 2020 | — | — | 31.9% | 28 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2019 | — | — | 26.7% | 32 | Critical Intervention Needed | Gov Risk | |
| 2018 | — | — | — | 33 | Critical Intervention Needed | Stable Watch | |
| 2017 | — | — | — | 33 | Critical Intervention Needed | Decline Risk | |
| 2016 | — | — | — | 37 | Financially Distressed | Stable Watch | |
| 2015 | — | — | — | 37 | Financially Distressed | Recovery | |
| 2014 | — | — | — | 33 | Critical Intervention Needed | Stable Watch | |
| 2013 | — | — | — | 33 | Critical Intervention Needed | Stable Watch | |
| 2012 | — | — | — | 33 | Critical Intervention Needed | Stable Watch |
Officer compensation history
Tax year 2025
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JESUS MANUEL BERARD | MUSIC DIRECT | 16.4% of Rev | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | ASST EXEC DI | 12.8% of Rev | ||
| BRENTON BENFIELD | EXECUTIVE DI | 10.8% of Rev | ||
| JESUS MANUEL BERARD | MUSIC DIRECT | 8.2% of Rev | ||
| KEVIN GILLIS | EDUCATION OU | 5.7% of Rev | ||
| BRENTON BENFIELD | EXECUTIVE DI | 3.8% of Rev | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | ASST EXEC DI | 2.5% of Rev | ||
| KATE BARNES | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | Treasurer | — | ||
| SANDRA GORDON | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| DAVID GOTTLIEB | Board Member | — | ||
| ELISA HILL | Secretary | — | ||
| BLAKE LORENZ | Board Member | — | ||
| PETER MIGNEREY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHERYL NKEBA | Board Member | — | ||
| SUSAN PEARL | Board President | — | ||
| KATE BARNES | Board Member | — | ||
| SHARLISE SHULTERBRANDT | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | Treasurer | — | ||
| WILLIAM SNIFFIN | Board Member | — | ||
| SANDRA GORDON | Board Member | — | ||
| ELISA HILL | Secretary | — | ||
| GARY KIRKEBY | Board Member | — | ||
| BLAKE LORENZ | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| PETER MIGNEREY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHERYL NKEBA | Board Member | — | ||
| SUSAN PEARL | Board President | — | ||
| WILLIAM SNIFFIN | Board Member | — | ||
| KEVIN GILLIS | EDUCATION OU | — |
Tax year 2023
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JESUS MANUEL BERARD | MUSIC DIRECT | 16.4% of Rev | ||
| BRENTON BENFIELD | EXECUTIVE DI | 11.8% of Rev | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | ASST EXEC DI | 3.8% of Rev | ||
| KATE BARNES | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | Treasurer | — | ||
| SANDRA GORDON | Board Member | — | ||
| ELISA HILL | Secretary | — | ||
| BLAKE LORENZ | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| PETER MIGNEREY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHERYL NKEBA | Board Member | — | ||
| SUSAN PEARL | Board President | — | ||
| WILLIAM SNIFFIN | Board Member | — | ||
| MARY ANN WHITE | Board Member | — | ||
| KEVIN GILLIS | EDUCATION OU | — |
Tax year 2021
| Name | Title | Phone | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JESUS MANUEL BERARD | MUSIC DIRECT | 15.7% of Rev | ||
| BRENTON BENFIELD | EXECUTIVE DI | 11.3% of Rev | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | ASST EXEC DI | 3.8% of Rev | ||
| ROSALIE ANNE DAHLEN-HARTFIELD | Board Member | — | ||
| RICHARD DALTON | Treasurer | — | ||
| H KEVIN GILLIS | EDUCATION OU | — | ||
| SANDRA GORDON | Board Member | — | ||
| ELISA HILL | Secretary | — | ||
| BLAKE LORENZ | VICE PRESIDE | — | ||
| PETER MIGNEREY | Board Member | — | ||
| CHERYL NKEBA | Board Member | — | ||
| SUSAN PEARL | Board President | — | ||
| EULINE ROSE | Board Member | — | ||
| WILLIAM SNIFFIN | Board Member | — | ||
| MARY ANN WHITE | Board Member | — |
Officer contact details, exact compensation figures, and active litigation are available to verified members.
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Score breakdown
Score breakdown
Financial resilience
5 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
42 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
30 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
22 / 100
Priority Review
The three components combine into a single 0–100 score weighted as shown. Full methodology →
Peer comparison
Compared to 164 other orgs in MD with NTEE prefix A6.
Most-divergent component: financial score sits 53 points below the peer median (5 vs. 58).
5-year trend: Compensation Escalation Cycle
Revenue grows modestly, but top officer compensation grows consistently for 5 years, breaching danger zones. The executive is negotiating aggressive raises against a compliant board.
What's driving this score
- Comp-to-revenue ratio of 33.0% is above the 90th percentile for orgs of this size (healthy band: 18–22%).
- Financial resilience score in the bottom quartile — reserves and liabilities ratios warrant review.
What would change this score
The two changes that would most improve this score:
- Reduce top-officer compensation from 33.0% to under 22% of revenue — would move governance score by ~22 points.
- Separate signing authority from fundraising authority when both are held by one person — removes the concentration penalty (~12 points).
Improving governance is a board decision. These are the levers.