Former state school employee Ellen Jakubicek, who retired in April 2018, saved $50,420 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, Jakubicek would collect as much as $1.07 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Jakubicek received $22,491 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Jakubicek will have already received $69,518 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.