Compensation Escalation Cycle
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
The Steward
Institutional Health Scores
5-yr trend: Compensation Escalation Cycle
Overall
33
Score
Governance
42
Score
Financial
40
Score
Program
30
Score

Institutional Epochs

2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
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 58.8% 33 Critical Intervention Needed Recovery
2023 Hidden Hidden 41.2% 31 Critical Intervention Needed Gov Risk
2022 20.2% 41 Governance-Stressed Gov Risk
2021 29.0% 40 Governance-Stressed Gov Risk
2020 12.7% 37 Financially Distressed Decline Risk
2019 13.4% 39 Fragile Recovery
2018 15.4% 39 Fragile Decline Risk
2017 2.4% 42 Financially Distressed Decline Risk
2016 48 Fragile Gov Risk
2015 14.4% 34 Critical Intervention Needed Decline Risk
2014 53 Fragile Recovery
2013 9.9% 40 Fragile Recovery
2012 7.9% 36 Financially Distressed Stable Watch

Officer compensation history

Tax year 2025

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
GABE LEWIS O'CONNOR Artistic Director 31.1% of Rev
EMILIA DIVITA EXECUTIVE DI 27.7% of Rev
CINDY HART VICE PRESIDE
KEN HITE Treasurer
SARAH HOADLEY Board Member
KATE LORENZ Board Member
MELISSA NARUM Board Member
MATT POOL Board President
SUSAN RALSTON Board Member
DR TANDY REUSSNER Board Member
LINDA ROBINSON Board Member
JENNIFER TALBOTT Secretary
KATHRYN E WHITE Board Member

Tax year 2023

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
CINNAMON RAMER Executive Dir. 22.2% of Rev
EMILIA DIVITA Executive Dir. 7.0% of Rev
JENNIFER ALDERDICE Secretary
DELORES BLASER Board Member
CINDY HART Board Member
MIKE LEITCH Board Member
WHITNEY JUNEAU Board Member
ROBIN MICHAEL Board Member
JOHANNA COX Board Member
TYLER EPP Treasurer
AMY FINKELDEI Board Member
DEREK KWAN Board Member
ALISON LANGHAM Board President
JENNIFER NEUBURGER TALBOTT Board President

Tax year 2022

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
CINNAMON RAMER Executive Direc 15.5% of Rev
JENNIFER ALDERDICE Board Member
TYLER EPP Board Member
LOREE CORDOVA Secretary
MIKE LEITCH Board Member
JOHANNAH COX Board Member
JESSICA DUNN Board Member
AMY FINKELDEI Treasurer
DEREK KWAN Board President
KAREN BLANTON Board Member
ALISON LANGHAM Board President
JENNIFER NEUBURGER TALBOTT Board Member

Tax year 2021

Name Title Phone Email Compensation
CINNAMON RAMER Executive Direc 22.2% of Rev
KURT GOESER Board Member
LINDA JALENAK Board President
LOREE CORDOVA Secretary
ANTHONY LANG Treasurer
JOHANNAH COX Board Member
JESSICA DUNN Board Member
AMY FINKELDEI Board Member
DEREK KWAN Board President
KAREN PRICE Board Member
ALISON LANGHAM 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
40 / 100
weight 40%
Governance risk
42 / 100
weight 40%
Program scale
30 / 100
weight 20%
Overall
33 / 100
Priority Review

The three components combine into a single 0–100 score weighted as shown. Full methodology →

Peer comparison

Compared to 59 other orgs in KS with NTEE prefix A6.

Most-divergent component: governance score sits 8 points below the peer median (42 vs. 50).

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

What would change this score

The two changes that would most improve this score:

  1. Reduce top-officer compensation from 58.8% to under 22% of revenue — would move governance score by ~40 points.
  2. 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.