South Central Reporter

Former state school employee Judith Sawyer, who retired in June 2016, saved $103,990 toward a pension over 15 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Sawyer would collect as much as $1.54 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes South Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Sawyer received $32,335 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Sawyer will have already received $135,277 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.