Chicago City Wire

Former military instructor Denise Smith, who retired in July 2018, saved $92,756 toward a pension over 14 years working for public schools, Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Smith would collect as much as $1.27 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Smith received $26,628 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Smith will have already received $111,403 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.