Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Ellen Orourke, who retired in June 2018, saved $162,681 toward a pension over 30 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Orourke would collect as much as $3.49 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Orourke received $73,295 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Orourke will have already received $226,548 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.