Illinois Valley Times

Former state school employee Diana Castaneda, who retired in October 2018, saved $60,385 toward a pension over 16 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Castaneda would collect as much as $1.18 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Illinois Valley Times.

The projection assumes Castaneda received $24,727 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Castaneda will have already received $76,429 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.