Chicago City Wire

Former high school teacher Patricia Tobin, who retired in February 2016, saved $42,659 toward a pension over 21 years working for public schools, Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Tobin would collect as much as $845,939, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Tobin received $17,781 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Tobin will have already received $54,958 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.