Lake County Gazette

Former state school employee Sheri Owens, who retired in June 2018, saved $311,772 toward a pension over 35 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Owens would collect as much as $6.92 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Owens received $145,517 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Owens will have already received $449,779 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.