Metro East Sun

Former state school employee Tina Setterlund, who retired in January 2017, saved $60,340 toward a pension over 20 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Setterlund would collect as much as $1.44 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Metro East Sun.

The projection assumes Setterlund received $30,361 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Setterlund will have already received $61,633 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.