Tucked away on a rural road between Red Bud and Hecker, Career Center of Southern Illinois has served Monroe County and its neighbors as a place for technical career and alternative high school education for 50 years.

Though the career center formerly known as Beck has experienced some struggles in recent years, CCSI also has much to celebrate looking back over its history now spanning five decades.

Located at 6137 Beck Road, the facility where CCSI is currently housed previously served as a U.S. Army Nike Missile Base when it was first constructed in 1959.

It was declared non-operational by the military in 1968 and was later sold for just one dollar to become Beck Training Center in 1972.

In the decades that followed, Beck – rebranded as CCSI in 2013 – was able to offer a variety of educational opportunities, with the first eight available programs including office procedures, radio repair, graphic arts and machine accounting.

Enrollment at Beck started at 287 from the 11 nearby high schools in Monroe, St. Clair and Randolph counties.

This number peaked at 514 students in 1977, with additional programs such as childcare and auto mechanics popping up to total 23 at one point.

Still celebrated is CCSI’s nursing program, which saw substantial growth in the 1970s and continues to have successful Licensed Practical Nursing and Certified Nurses Assistant programs.

CCSI Director Stephanie Mohr reflected on the center’s history and current status – especially praising its nursing program.

“Our demographic for the nursing program is highly diverse – it’s life-changing to people,” Mohr said. “This program provides the path to career opportunities for people, many of whom are from under-privileged backgrounds.”

Mohr further noted the high graduation rate for CCSI’s nursing program, adding, “Beck nurses are in high demand with area employers.”

Along with nursing and technical education opportunities, CCSI also offers a high school alternative program targeted to students who have dropped out of high school or simply didn’t learn well in a traditional school setting.

For these high school students, the center offers more standard academic courses as well as vocational courses for those hoping to start a career in a technical trade right out of high school.

As CCSI serves as an alternative for what some might call “troubled” youth, Mohr acknowledged the center has developed something of a reputation that doesn’t accurately describe what the school actually has to offer.

“Even after 50 years, there’s many in our communities that don’t know that CCSI is here offering these education opportunities,” Mohr said. “Our programs provide career and technical education, but also a learning experience that may be more in tune with students who struggle in a traditional classroom.”

Monroe-Randolph County Regional Superintendent of Schools Kelton Davis spoke similarly, emphasizing that CCSI isn’t “where the bad kids go,” but is instead a place for students to get a quality education that can cater more to their needs and interests.

Davis offered a great deal of praise for CCSI precisely for the opportunities it can provide students – particularly those seeking a trade profession.

“What is amazing is, all the people and professionals I’ve come across, how many of them attended out at Beck,” Davis said. “A lot of people who you see in some of those technical fields and others. There probably isn’t a week goes by that if I’m talking with somebody about what I do and the career center that I come across a graduate.”

Despite its unique offerings, CCSI has struggled in recent years.

A particular low was acknowledged in 2016 as the center faced a lack of state funding and drop in enrollment among its programs that threatened to close down the facility.

Mohr said the facility’s location out in the country has potentially had an impact on awareness of the center in the community.

While there was talk about potentially relocating CCSI back in 2011, Mohr said the current location actually has a distinct benefit in that it allows the center to cater to all 10 school districts in the tri-county area – even as it makes advertising a bit more difficult.

“I think our location does prohibit that, but the benefit of our location is we are central to all 10 of our serving schools,” Mohr said. “We’re serving Dupo down to Chester, Sparta, Valmeyer, so this is actually a fairly central location for all of these districts.”

Another problem CCSI has encountered in recent years is a decline in students pursuing the trades and technical careers.

Davis noted that, even as many in education stress the importance of both college and career readiness, far more emphasis is placed on college rather than ensuring students are able to get a job right after graduating.

Both he and Mohr acknowledged there has been a notable uptick in demand for trade and technical employees in the last few years, suggesting that those fields could gain some new interest provided students are exposed to alternative education options beside college.

“Our students are capable, absolutely capable of this, but we have got to offer those positions,” Davis  said.

CCSI Principal and Assistant Director Mitch North similarly remarked on the shift in public perception in favor of the trades, adding CCSI is a good option for local students to pursue that career.

“As people are beginning to once again see the value of technical careers, we’re seeing a resurgence in young people becoming interested in technical education,” North said. “Parents recognize that there are real opportunities for rewarding careers for their kids in fields like automotive repair, welding, childcare and law enforcement, and the education for those careers starts at CCSI.”

While alternative education opportunities at CCSI are notable for a number of reasons, the chance to learn a trade is perhaps the most notable.

Both Mohr and Davis lauded the performance of CCSI graduates, with Mohr specifically pointing to the school’s success at state SkillsUSA competitions where students are able to showcase their personal, workplace and technical skills.

Mohr said students performed exceptionally well this year and in years past, with two students this year placing first and third in auto collision repair.

She added that, as CCSI looks ahead, this strong performance as well as increased community outreach involving social media and a presence in college and job fairs will help those in the community recognize CCSI as a strong option for technical and alternative education.

For more information on CCSI, call 618-473-2222  or visit gotoccsi.org.