Metro East Sun

Former state school employee Donna Emmons, who retired in April 2016, saved $25,804 toward a pension over 6 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Emmons would collect as much as $375,392, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Metro East Sun.

The projection assumes Emmons received $7,890 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Emmons will have already received $33,010 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.