East Central Reporter

Former state school employee Russell Nichols, who retired in May 2016, saved $105,180 toward a pension over 43 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Nichols would collect as much as $2.84 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes East Central Reporter.

The projection assumes Nichols received $59,671 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Nichols will have already received $121,132 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.