About SURS

SURS Building

Main Office
1901 Fox Drive
Champaign, IL 61820

Naperville Office

Satellite Office
NIU Naperville Outreach Center
1120 E. Diehl Road
Naperville, Illinois 60563
(By appointment only – no mail delivery)

For contact information, visit our Contact page.

 

SURS – Living Our Mission

How We Succeed This Year and Beyond

 

SURS Annual Comprehensive Financial Report

The Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the State Universities Retirement System of Illinois (SURS).

 

All About SURS

This booklet is a brief, yet comprehensive look at the System, our investment and funding history, membership, benefit distribution and relevant legislation. Information is updated on a regular basis.

 

SURS In Brief

This flyer succinctly outlines membership, investment and benefit figures, and provides a retirement-plan comparison chart.

 

SURS Funding Highlights

View funding highlights, a dashboard of monthly state payments and information on how SURS is funded.

 

SURS History and Membership

 

In 1941, a four-year study concluded with the formation of the University Retirement System. The act provided “for the creation, maintenance, and administration of a Retirement System for the benefit of the staff members and employees of the University of Illinois and certain other state educational and scientific agencies.” Ruth Ellen Kunkel was the System’s first employee and administrator.

In 1942, the System had 3,760 participants and added two additional staff members. In the following years, the University Retirement System grew to include other universities, colleges, and affiliated agencies throughout the state.

In 1963, the System adopted its current name, State Universities Retirement System (SURS).

Today SURS serves 61 employers* in Illinois including state universities, community colleges, and state agencies. It employs approximately 166 full-time employees in offices in Champaign and Naperville and provides benefit services to over 240,000 members throughout the world. SURS has a total operating budget of $30,754,180 for FY 2022.

*Number denotes combining of several campuses.

 

SURS Governance

SURS is governed by an 11-member board of trustees. Four trustees are elected by active SURS members, two trustees are elected by retired SURS members, and five trustees are appointed by the governor of Illinois (one of whom is the chairperson of the Illinois Board of Higher Education). The governor designates the board chairperson from among the eleven trustees. All appointed trustees must be approved by the Illinois Senate. Trustees serve six-year terms.

The board meets at minimum seven times per year. Agendas are posted 48 hours prior to each meeting.

The SURS Board of Trustees has a fiduciary duty to administer the System in compliance with the requirements of Articles 1 and 15 of the Illinois Pension Code.

Members of the public who would like to make public comments during any SURS Board of Trustees or Committee meetings that are open to the public must comply with the requirements found in Title 80, Subtitle D, Chapter II, Section 1600.120 (i)(1) and (2) of the Illinois Register. Click here for details.

 

Senior Administrative Staff

Name Title Email
Suzanne Mayer Executive Director
Executive_Director@surs.org
Michael Schlachter Chief Investment Officer Chief_Investment_Officer@surs.org
Bianca T. Green General Counsel and Freedom of Information Officer General_Counsel@surs.org
Tara Myers Chief Financial Officer Chief_Financial_Officer@surs.org
Jefferey Saiger Chief Technology Officer Chief_Technology_Officer@surs.org
Nichole Hemming Chief Human Resources Officer Chief_Human_Resources_Officer@surs.org
Jackie Hohn Chief Internal Auditor Chief_Internal_Auditor@surs.org

Board of Trustees

Name Title Email
Andriy Bodnaruk Elected Trustee abodnaruk@surs.org
Richard Figueroa Appointed Trustee rfigueroa@surs.org
J. Fred Giertz Elected Trustee fgiertz@surs.org
Scott Hendrie Appointed Trustee shendrie@surs.org
Pranav Kothari Appointed Trustee pkothari@surs.org
John Lyons Appointed Trustee jlyons@surs.org
Herbert Pitman Elected Trustee hpitman@surs.org
Steven Rock Elected Trustee srock@surs.org
Collin Van Meter Elected Trustee cvanmeter@surs.org
Antonio Vasquez Elected Trustee avasquez@surs.org
Mitchell Vogel Elected Trustee mvogel@surs.org

There is currently a vacant appointed trustee seat on SURS board.

 

SURS Organizational Chart

Click here to open.

 

Legislation Affecting SURS

SURS was created by the governor and General Assembly in 1941. Consistent with that, changes to the existing benefit program must be enacted through legislation. Examples of SURS-related legislative action can be found in the passage of yearly appropriation bills and the pension reform acts of 2010 and 2013. Changes in state law will continue to affect the agencies we serve, the benefits we provide and how we are funded.

For more information on legislation affecting SURS, view our Legislation page.

SURS is an IRS Qualified Plan
View SURS 401(a) Defined Benefit Favorable Determination Letter from the IRS.
View SURS 401(a) Defined Contribution Favorable Determination Letter from the IRS.