Metro East Sun

Former state school employee Cynthia Cassens Mickle, who retired in May 2018, saved $134,349 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, Cassens Mickle would collect as much as $2.86 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Metro East Sun.

The projection assumes Cassens Mickle received $60,054 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Cassens Mickle will have already received $185,622 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.