South Central Reporter

Former state school employee Karen Neathery, who retired in May 2017, saved $42,834 toward a pension over 16 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Neathery would collect as much as $773,336, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes South Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Neathery received $16,254 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Neathery will have already received $50,240 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.