West Central Reporter

Former state school employee Maureen Hazell, who retired in July 2016, saved $114,873 toward a pension over 28 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Hazell would collect as much as $2.97 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes West Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Hazell received $62,439 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Hazell will have already received $126,751 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.