Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Carol Gallagher, who retired in June 2018, saved $119,593 toward a pension over 23 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Gallagher would collect as much as $2.27 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Gallagher received $47,648 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Gallagher will have already received $147,274 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.