Former state school employee Darlene Harsant, who retired in February 2016, saved $28,007 toward a pension over 8 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Harsant would collect as much as $506,712, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Harsant received $10,650 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Harsant will have already received $32,919 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.