West Central Reporter

Former state school employee Karen McClerren, who retired in June 2016, saved $19,488 toward a pension over 10 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, McClerren would collect as much as $476,425, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes West Central Reporter.

The projection assumes McClerren received $10,014 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, McClerren will have already received $20,328 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.