Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Yolanda Gardner, who retired in January 2016, saved $73,350 toward a pension over 27 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Gardner would collect as much as $1.69 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Gardner received $35,500 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Gardner will have already received $109,727 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.