Lake County Gazette

Former state school employee Kathryn Rossett, who retired in June 2017, saved $162,364 toward a pension over 31 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Rossett would collect as much as $3.62 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Rossett received $76,036 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Rossett will have already received $235,020 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.