2022
Total Retirement Offering (TRO)

Gwinnett County Public Schools

FINALIST
Suwanee, Georgia
David Harris
Director, Retirement and Risk Management Services
  • Plans
    403(b); 457(b); Gwinnett Retirement System defined benefit
  • Total Plan Assets
    $2.8B in DB; $850MM in defined contribution
  • Number of Participants
    36,700 in DB; 27,200 in DC
  • Participation Rate
    78%
  • Average Deferral Rate
    4.3%
  • Default Deferral Rate
    2.5%
  • Default Investment
    T. Rowe Price target-date fund
  • Automatic Enrollment
  • Automatic Escalation
  • Employer Contribution
    Not applicable
  • Providers
    Recordkeepers: Internal Retirement Department for DB, AIG for DC; Advisers, NEPC for DB, AIG and Iron Capital for DC
  • Financial Wellness Educators
    Internal Retirement Department for DB; AIG for DC


Employees of Gwinnett County Public Schools might participate in a number of retirement plans—the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia, the Gwinnett Retirement System defined benefit plan, a 403(b) plan and a 457(b) plan, which each allow pre-tax and Roth deferrals.

The GRS is a Social Security replacement plan, since GCPS does not participate in Social Security. “Since GRS is completely funded by the district and provides a benefit similar to Social Security, employees are basically getting Social Security for free,” says David Harris, director, retirement and risk management services, Gwinnett County Public Schools.

The GRS has achieved a 90% funded rate. Harris explains that under Georgia law, an actuary determines the required amount that GCPS must contribute to the plan; however, the school system contributes more than that “because our budget allows it, and it further shows our commitment to employees’ retirement.”

For an employee population that is covered by a state DB plan as well as the GRS, a 78% participation rate in the defined contribution plans is impressive. Automatic enrollment into the 403(b) plan helps; Harris says 93% of employees who are auto-enrolled still participate in the 403(b) plan. One reason for the default deferral rate of 2.5% is so participating in the plan will not be a financial burden and more employees will stay in the plan, he says. The district also recognizes that employees have other sources of retirement income.

With the help of its DC plan recordkeeper, AIG, GCPS uses data to find “gaps” in contribution levels. Harris explains that the school system looks at job categories, locations and school types to determine which employee groups are lagging in contributions. “This shows us where to focus our advisers,” he says. “We have more than 140 schools with more than 22,000 employees.” Harris says advisers educate employees about what they should be saving and the advantages and disadvantages of Roth contributions, in addition to discussing overall financial wellness topics with employees.

“GCPS is the largest school system in the state of Georgia, and it offers on-site education at each school location to ensure employees have access to a financial professional,” says David Person, an Atlanta-based district vice president at VALIC Financial Advisors, a subsidiary of AIG. “They also pivoted to virtual meetings to ensure that all employees continued to have that access during the pandemic.”

Advisers also help employees determine whether they need to participate in both the 403(b) and 457(b) plans. Asked why GCPS offers both, Harris says the main reason is that with the 457(b), employees can take distributions prior to age 59.5 without penalty. “With teachers being allowed to retire after 30 years of service, many retire prior to that age,” he says. “They can take distributions from the 457(b) without penalty, and we advise them of that.”

When so many plans are available to participate in, it can be difficult to see the total picture of retirement income sources. Because of this, the school system started providing what Harris calls a “Total Benefit Projection” in 2017. He says it started as a one-time projection but has grown since then. A worksheet is created for employees that combines employees’ TRSGA, GRS, 403(b) and 457(b) accounts and projects their potential benefits for different possible retirement dates.

“It provides employees a guide of what retirement benefits might look like for them at different tenures,” Harris says. When the Total Benefit Projections first started, Harris would travel to different schools to meet with employees to present their projections and discuss them. He has now trained one of his staff to assist with the meetings, and AIG will be going out to present them on GCPS’ behalf to reach a larger audience even faster.

Each meeting starts with general discussions about targeting an 80% income replacement at retirement to maintain a similar standard of living to what they have while working and saving 10%-15% of their income every year for retirement. Harris notes that employees already contribute 6% of their salary to the state DB plan. Employees are also reminded that since they do not contribute to the Social Security system, they have an additional 6.2% of their paycheck to contribute toward retirement.

Then the Total Benefit Projection is discussed. “It gives employees a perspective of what retirement date they can have depending on how they want to live, and it also shows how changing their 403(b) contribution rate would affect their future balance,” Harris says. “The feedback from the more than 500 employees we’ve talked to this year shows a real appreciation. They say they know what they’re working for and can understand what they have.”

Rebecca Moore

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