Chicago City Wire

Former teacher Sybil Valerie De La Pena, who retired in October 2018, saved $96,174 toward a pension over 16 years working for public schools, Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, De La Pena would collect as much as $1.51 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes De La Pena received $31,642 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, De La Pena will have already received $97,802 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.