Lake County Gazette

Former state school employee Joan Upell, who retired in October 2018, saved $44,836 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, Upell would collect as much as $1.83 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Upell received $38,367 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Upell will have already received $77,885 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.