Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Deborah Cohen, who retired in May 2018, saved $167,295 toward a pension over 25 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Cohen would collect as much as $3.09 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Cohen received $64,952 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Cohen will have already received $200,761 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.