Champaign, IL, April 18, 2018 – Today, TIAA hosted a panel discussion on the changing retirement landscape in America at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, with experts from academia, the public sector and TIAA examining solutions for helping to secure the financial future of retirees. University of Illinois students, faculty, staff and others from the Urbana and Champaign communities attended the event to listen to panelists discuss the retirement challenge and to pose questions about the future of retirement in America.
TIAA CEO of Institutional Financial Services Ron Pressman provided introductory remarks at the event and moderated the panel, commenting on the challenges retirees face in America, and the need to plan ahead, “At the most basic level, as a nation, we have to help people plan and save better for retirement, so that they can translate savings accrued during working years into an income stream they won’t outlive.”
Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs provided the keynote remarks at the event, noting, “Illinois’ Secure Choice Program is a step in the right direction to help ensure people can retire with dignity, but we know that we cannot stop here. This crisis is not an issue that only affects someone else. It touches us all. That is why we all need to work for a solution to address the financial future of retirees.”
Angela Lyons, associate professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, discussed the challenges that many individuals face in retirement, “More and more Americans are retiring with inadequate savings and increased debt holdings, but that’s merely a symptom of the greater retirement savings problem the U.S. is facing. Increasing efforts to support economically vulnerable populations in their saving efforts and taking steps to increase financial education in the U.S. broadly are two critical steps employers and policymakers can get started on now.”
About TIAA
With an award-winning1 track record for consistent investment performance, TIAA (TIAA.org) is the leading provider of financial services in the academic, research, medical, cultural and government fields. TIAA has $1 trillion in assets under management (as of 12/31/20172) and offers a wide range of financial solutions, including investing, banking, advice and education, and retirement services.