Chicago City Wire

Former school social worker Ellen Schein, who retired in July 2018, saved $158,641 toward a pension over 28 years working for public schools, Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Schein would collect as much as $2.53 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Schein received $53,135 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Schein will have already received $164,235 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.