Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Diana Smith, who retired in July 2016, saved $231,955 toward a pension over 24 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Smith would collect as much as $3.56 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Smith received $74,910 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Smith will have already received $313,395 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.