Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Phyllis Stevens, who retired in February 2016, saved $23,706 toward a pension over 7 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Stevens would collect as much as $442,719, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Stevens received $9,305 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Stevens will have already received $28,761 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.