Will County Gazette

Former state school employee Dorene Jonelis, who retired in June 2016, saved $153,751 toward a pension over 38 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Jonelis would collect as much as $3.6 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Will County Gazette.

The projection assumes Jonelis received $75,701 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Jonelis will have already received $233,984 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.