Former state school employee Linda Sokolowski, who retired in June 2016, saved $163,338 toward a pension over 29 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Sokolowski would collect as much as $3.95 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Sokolowski received $82,949 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Sokolowski will have already received $168,386 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.