South Central Reporter

Former state school employee Shelly Kaufman, who retired in February 2016, saved $17,389 toward a pension over 5 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Kaufman would collect as much as $224,628, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes South Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Kaufman received $4,721 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Kaufman will have already received $19,752 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.