Dupage Policy Journal

Former state school employee Melanie Smith, who retired in June 2016, saved $190,622 toward a pension over 37 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 $4.26 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Smith received $89,571 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Smith will have already received $276,855 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.