La Grange D102 Teachers Who Are Retiring In Coming Years

LA GRANGE, IL – Sixteen La Grange School District 102 educators are set to retire in 2029 and 2030.

Under a union contract, teachers can get guaranteed pay hikes of 6 percent annually for four years if they give their irrevocable letters of retirement by May 1 of the school year the raises kick in.

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Patch received the names of the retiring teachers through a public records request.

Teachers retiring in 2028-29:

• Julie Pitelka
• Kelly Vaiciulis
• Osena Kuehnle
• Mark Kay Masterson
• Lauren Rowder
• Jennifer Kaminski
• Vicky Nemickas
• Christy Schwartz
• Nancy Flanagan
• Paula Vedok

Teachers retiring in 2029-30:

• Melanie Turek
• Jill Quinones
• Nancy Dold
• Susan Tullis
• Betsy D'Alessio
• Christopher Finch

It may seem strange in many occupations to give retirement notice so early.

But District 102's union contract is like many others in Illinois that include the pre-retirement 6 percent raises.

In Illinois, the last four years are crucial for determining the amount of pensions, a system that critics call pension-spiking.

The state pays the employer portion of teacher pensions, so local districts don't feel the long-term direct effect of their end-of-career raises. Some suggest shifting the employer's pension costs to local districts, so they can be held accountable for their salary decisions.