Former state university employee Nickelman paid in $8K to pension fund, could collect $205K in retirement

Former state university employee Kathleen Nickelman, who retired in September 2017, saved $8,019 toward a pension over 10 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Nickelman would collect as much as $204,697, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Nickelman received $4,302 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Nickelman will have already received $8,733 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.