Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois

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Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois
Basic facts
Location:	Springfield, Illinois
Top official:	Matthew Hunt, president
Year founded:	1939
Active members:	166,714
Website:	Official website
Total assets under management
2023:	$66,502,286,972

See also: Public pensions in Illinois

The Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois (TRS) is a Illinois state pension fund that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to the state's teachers, school administrators, other school personnel, and their beneficiaries. TRS had $66,502,286,972 ($66.5 billion) in total assets under management as of June 30, 2023.

The management of public pension funds can indicate support or opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investment practices. ESG investing considers the extent to which corporations align with and promote certain non-financial standards, such as net carbon emission or corporate board diversity goals. States typically hire asset management companies (AMCs) to direct pension plan investments, some of which have ESG commitments that guide their strategies.

This article features the following sections:

• Background: Information about the structure and functions of TRS.
• Pension performance overview: Overview of the funding level and assets managed by TRS.
• Assets and asset management: Information about the asset management companies (AMCs) that contract with TRS, including a list of contracting AMCs that are participants in the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative and the Climate Action 100+ initiative.
• Governance and accountability: Details about TRS's oversight board, including members and selection.

Background

See also: Public pensions

The Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois (TRS), founded in 1939, invests the assets of and provides funding for the retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to teachers, administrators, and other school personnel outside the city of Chicago.

TRS served over 166,714 active members and approximately 167,253 retirees and beneficiaries as of June 30, 2022.

Pension performance overview

The following table features information about the funding level and assets managed by the Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois as of June 30, 2023:

Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois pension performance (June 30, 2023)
Fiscal year	Percent funded	Unfunded liabilities	Total assets
2023	44.8%	$81,896,009,108	$66,502,286,972

Assets and asset management

Asset management companies (AMCs) are hired to manage asset investment for state pension funds across all 50 states.

As of October 2024, 330 AMCs were members of the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAM), and 391 AMCs were investor participants in the Climate Action 100+ initiative. Both international asset manager initiatives aimed to align the investment decisions of signatories with the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

NZAM announced on January 13, 2025, that it was suspending operations and removing the commitment statement and list of signatories from its website. The group said in a statement it would reevaluate its plans and operations in light of “[r]ecent developments in the U.S. and different regulatory and client expectations in investors’ respective jurisdictions.”

List of AMCs contracting with the Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois

The Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois (TRS) contracted with 179 asset management companies (AMCs) or specific funds as of June 1, 2022. Of those companies, eight were investor participants in Climate Action 100+, and 18 were members of NZAM, as of 2024. The following list identifies the AMCs (and in some cases, the specific funds) contracting with TRS:

• A & M Capital Partners II, L.P
• Acadian Asset Management, L.L.C. (NZAM, Climate Action 100+)
• Advent International GPE VII-C Limited Partnership
• Advent International GPE VIII-B-2 Limited Partnership
• Altaris Constellation Partners IV, L.P
• Altaris Health Partners IV, L.P.
• Altaris Health Partners V, L.P.
• Apollo Investment Fund IX, L.P.
• Apollo Investment Fund VI, L.P.
• Apollo Investment Fund VII, L.P.
• Apollo Investment Fund VIII Annex A
• Apollo Investment Fund VIII, L.P.
• Apollo Lincoln Private Credit Fund, L.P
• AQR Capital Management, L.L.C.
• Arlington V, L.P.
• Arrowstreet Capital, L.P
• Astorg VI, SLP (NZAM)
• Astorg VII, SLP (NZAM)
• Aurora Equity Partners VI, L.P.
• Avance Investment Partners, L.P.
• Axiom International Investors (Climate Action 100+)
• Bain Relish Investor, L.P.
• Battery Ventures XI-A Side Fund, L.P.
• Battery Ventures XI-A, L.P.
• Bertram Growth Capital IV, L.P.
• Blackstone Capital Partners VI Annex A
• Bregal Sagemount III-B, L.P. (NZAM)
• Bregal Unternehmerkapital III-A SCSp (NZAM)
• Carlyle/Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund III, L.P
• Clearlake Capital Partners II, L.P.
• Clearlake Capital Partners III, L.P.
• Clearlake Capital Partners IV, L.P.
• Clearlake Capital Partners V, L.P
• Clearlake Capital Partners VI, L.P
• Clearlake Flagship Plus Partners, L.P
• Clearlake Opportunities Partners (P), L.P
• Edgewater Growth Capital Partners II, L.P
• Edgewater Growth Capital Partners III, L.P
• Edgewater Growth Capital Partners, L.P
• EIF United States Power Fund IV, L.P.
• Emerald Advisors, Inc.
• Energy Capital Partners II Annex A
• EQT IX (No. 2) USD SCSp (NZAM)
• EQT Midmarket Europe, L.P (NZAM)
• EQT VI, L.P. (NZAM)
• EQT VII, L.P. (NZAM)
• EQT VIII, L.P. (NZAM)
• FinTech Collective Fund III, L.P
• Grain Communications Opportunity Fund II, L.P.
• Grain Communications Opportunity Fund III, L.P
• Grain Communications Opportunity Fund, L.P.
• Grandeur Peak Global Advisors, L.L.C.
• Granite Ventures II, L.P.
• Greenspring IL Master 2.0, L.P.
• Greenspring IL Master, L.P.
• Greenspring IL Special II, L.P
• Greenspring IL Special, L.P.
• GTCR Fund VIII, L.P.
• Harvest Partners Structured Capital Fund II, L.P.
• ICV Partners II, L.P.
• ICV Partners III, L.P.
• ICV Partners IV, L.P.
• IL Asia Investors, L.P.
• Inflexion Buyout Partnership V, L.P.
• Inflexion Enterprise Fund V (No. 1), L.P.
• Inflexion Partnership Capital II, L.P
• Inflexion Supplemental Fund V (No. 1), L.P.
• Insight Opportunities Fund I Annex A (Climate Action 100+)
• Insight Partners Opportunities Fund I, L.P. (Climate Action 100+)
• Institutional Venture Partners XV, L.P.
• Institutional Venture Partners XVI, L.P.
• J.P. Morgan Investment Management, Inc. (NZAM)
• JMI Equity Fund VII, L.P.
• JMI Equity Fund VIII-A, L.P.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners IX, L.P.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners Select II, L.P.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners Select, L.P.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners X, L.P.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners XI, L.P
• Littlejohn Fund IV, L.P.
• LiveOak Venture Partners I, L.P
• Longitude Venture Partners II, L.P.
• Longitude Venture Partners III, L.P.
• LSV Asset Management
• Madison Dearborn Capital Partners VII, L.P.
• Marlin Equity V, L.P.
• MBK Partners Fund II, L.P.
• MBK Partners Fund III Annex B
• MBK Partners Fund III, L.P
• MBK Partners Fund IV, L.P.
• MBK Partners Fund V, L.P.
• Mill Point Capital Partners II, L.P.
• Morgan Creek Partners Asia, L.P.
• New Enterprise Associates 15, L.P.
• New Enterprise Associates 16, L.P.
• New Mountain Partners III, L.P
• New Mountain Partners IV, L.P.
• New Mountain Partners V, L.P.
• New Mountain Partners VI, L.P.
• NGP Natural Resources IX Annex A
• NGP Natural Resources X, L.P.
• NGP Natural Resources XI, L.P.
• NGP Natural Resources XII, L.P
• Northern Trust Investments, Inc. (NZAM, Climate Action 100+)
• Oaktree European Principal Fund III, L.P.
• Oaktree Opportunities Fund IX, L.P.
• Oaktree Opportunities Fund VIII, L.P
• Oaktree Opportunities Fund Xb, L.P
• OceanSound Partners Fund, L.P
• OCM European Principal Opportunities Fund II, L.P.
• OCM Opportunities Fund VIIb, L.P
• Palladium Equity Partners IV, L.P.
• Pamlico Capital V, L.P.
• Parthenon Investors IV Annex A
• Parthenon Investors IV, L.P.
• Parthenon Investors V, L.P.
• Parthenon Investors VI, L.P.
• Providence Equity Partners VI Annex A
• Providence Equity Partners VI International, L.P.
• Providence Equity Partners VII, L.P.
• RCP Multi-Fund Feeder SBO 1.0, L.P.
• RCP SBO Fund II, L.P
• RCP SBO Fund, L.P
• RCP SBO Opportunities Fund, L.P
• Rhone Capital V Annex A
• Rhone Partners IV, L.P.
• Rhone Partners V, L.P.
• RhumbLine Advisors, L.P
• RhumbLine Advisors, L.P.
• Ridgemont Annex A
• Ridgemont Equity Partners III, L.P.
• Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund V Annex A
• Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund V, L.P.
• Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund VI, L.P.
• Riverstone/Carlyle Global Energy and Power Fund IV, L.P
• RRJ Capital Master Fund III, L.P
• Scale Venture Partners V, L.P
• Scale Venture Partners VII, L.P.
• Shasta Ventures, L.P.
• Silver Lake Alpine, L.P.
• Silver Lake Partners III, L.P.
• Silver Lake Partners IV, L.P.
• Silver Lake Partners V, L.P.
• Silver Lake Partners VI, L.P.
• Siris Partners II, L.P.
• Siris Partners III, L.P
• Siris Partners IV, L.P.
• SK Capital Catalyst Fund I, L.P.
• SK Capital Partners V-A, L.P
• Sofinnova Venture Partners IX, L.P.
• Sofinnova Venture Partners VIII, L.P
• Sofinnova Venture Partners X, L.P.
• StarVest Partners II, L.P.
• Stellex Capital Partners II, L.P.
• Strategic Global Advisors (Climate Action 100+)
• Sunstone Partners I, L.P.
• Sunstone Partners II, L.P.
• T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. (NZAM)
• TA Select Opportunities Fund-A, L.P.
• TA XII-A, L.P.
• TA XIII, L.P.
• TDR Capital IV 'A', L.P.
• The Baring Asia Private Equity Fund V, L.P.
• The Baring Asia Private Equity Fund VI, L.P.1
• Trident V, L.P.
• Trident VI, L.P.
• Trident VII, L.P.
• Trident VIII, L.P.
• Trustbridge Partners IV, L.P.
• TSG 8, L.P.
• Veritas Capital Fund IV, L.P.
• Veritas Capital Fund V, L.P.
• Veritas Capital Fund VI, L.P.
• Vista Equity Partners Fund V, L.P. (NZAM)
• Vista Equity Partners Fund VI, L.P. (NZAM)
• Vista Foundation Fund III, L.P. (NZAM)
• Vista Foundation Fund IV, L.P. (NZAM)
• Wasatch Advisors
• ZMC III, L.P.

Governance and accountability

This section features information about the 15-member board of trustees that oversees the Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois (TRS). The board is specific to oversight of TRS and does not exercise oversight duties for other state funds.

Board selection method

The board of trustees that oversees TRS is made up of 15 members. Trustees include the state superintendent of education, seven trustees appointed by the governor, five trustees elected by members of TRS, and two trustees elected by TRS annuitants.

Board of trustees membership

A 15-member board of trustees oversees the operation and administration of TRS. The following individuals served on the board as of June 2024:

• Matthew Hunt, president
• Andrew Hirshman, vice president
• Dr. Tony Sanders
• Beth Anderson
• Kevin (Duffy) Blackburn
• Joseph Blomquist
• Marsha Byas
• Michael Goetz
• Maria “Mia” Jazo-Harris
• Maureen Mena
• David Miller
• Fred Peronto
• Larry Pfeiffer
• Doug Strand
• vacant

See also

• Public pensions in Illinois
• Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• Arguments about environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• Opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing
• Reform proposals related to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• State legislative approaches opposing ESG investing
• State legislative approaches supporting ESG investing

External links

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