South Central Reporter

Former state university employee Ira Hickam, who retired in January 2018, saved $58,695 toward a pension over 12 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Hickam would collect as much as $1.32 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes South Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Hickam received $27,675 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Hickam will have already received $85,540 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.