Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Patricia Hennessy, who retired in June 2016, saved $156,658 toward a pension over 35 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Hennessy would collect as much as $3.52 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Hennessy received $74,049 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Hennessy will have already received $228,877 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.