Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Joann Ryan, who retired in May 2016, saved $37,136 toward a pension over 17 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Ryan would collect as much as $638,208, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Ryan received $13,414 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Ryan will have already received $41,460 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.