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the Campus: Southwestern Illinois Justice & Workforce Development Campus
The Campus History
Originally Belleville Township High School from 1915-2003, then Lindenwood University from 2003-2019, now the Campus is owned by the City of Belleville and overseen by Southwestern Illinois College.
This historically significant campus is filled with beautiful buildings, several of which were designed in the 1920’s by William Ittner, a world-renowned architect and designer from St. Louis, Missouri. Ittner has been described as the most influential man in school architecture, having created over 430 school facilities nationwide.
The Campus is comprised of six buildings with classrooms, meeting spaces, and a 950-seat theater. Its athletic facilities include a basketball arena, a football field, and a soccer field. Located at 2300 West Main Street, the Campus has experienced many exciting changes, all brought to fruition to enhance the viability of this facility for our community through collaborative use.
The campus now houses numerous entities, which include both educational and sports programs as well as three of our City of Belleville departments.
Campus Entities
City of Belleville - #18 on Map
Three of the city's departments are conveniently located on the campus:
- Economic Development, Planning & Zoning
- Engineering Department
- Health, Housing & Building
Illinois State Police Metro-East Forensic Science Laboratory - #21 on Map
The Illinois State Police, Division of Forensic Services will be utilizing portions of the Southwestern Illinois Justice & Workforce Development Campus in order to support its training mission, to include hosting external and internal in-service training opportunities as well as initial training for Forensic Scientists.
Information on the Forensic Scientist Trainee program can be found at Illinois State Police website.
Southern Illinois Law Enforcement Commission (SILEC) - #4 on Map
SILEC is a not-for-profit agency that acts under the authority of the Illinois Law Enforcement Training & Standards Board. It provides static and mobilized law enforcement training to municipal and county law enforcement agencies primarily in the counties of Madison, Bond, Clinton, St. Clair, Monroe, Washington, and Randolph in Illinois.
SILEC organizes and delivers in-service training to approximately 90 Law Enforcement agencies who collectively employ 1800 Law Enforcement Officers, 200 county Correctional officers, approximately one-hundred 911 operators, police dispatch centers, county probation officers, Illinois Parole Officers, and Judicial Court Officers. The training is mobilized to numerous geographic areas within Southwestern Illinois to make it more convenient for area law enforcement agencies to access their mandated in-service training.
Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School - #17 on Map
Third-year students from the Southern Illinois University Simmons School of Law live and take classes on the Southwestern Illinois Justice and Workforce Development Campus while working at various state and federal offices.
In the semester-long Metro East Criminal Justice Experiential Learning Program, students gain immersive experiences in the justice system, and the community benefits from the legal services the students provide under the supervision of practicing attorneys. In accordance with Supreme Court Rule 711, students will make court appearances, counsel clients, negotiate settlements, and prepare documents.
The program provides a unique opportunity for SIU law students to collaborate with other campus tenants including the Illinois State Police Forensic Institute, the Southern Illinois Law Enforcement Commission, Southwestern Illinois College Police Academy, and other nonprofit organizations. SIU Law also plans to host admissions events for prospective students and engage with alumni and attorneys in the region.
Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) - #4 on Map
The Southwestern Illinois Police Academy (SWIPA) utilizes a combination of academia and practitioners to deliver a well-rounded, law enforcement based foundation of education. The end result of the training program is a state certified individual capable of performing at the entry level requirements of any local or county law enforcement agency in the state of Illinois.
The basic training course includes all aspects of entry level law enforcement training to include strengthening good foundations of ethics, examining legal issues, citizen interaction, community oriented policing, investigative skills, state of the art firearms training and defensive tactics. The academy offers basic training for full-time and part-time police officers.
Since its inception in 1971, the Southwestern Illinois Police Academy graduates have been among the highest scoring state certification test score averages in the state.
The SWIC Police Academy is one of seven certified police academies in the State of Illinois and is certified by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board. The five year passage rate for the State BLE Certification Exam is 100%.
Learn more about the SWIC Police Academy.
Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville - #13,14,22 on Map
Master of Forensic Sciences
Through a partnership between SIUE and the ISP Forensic Science Institute, SIUE launched the only master’s program in forensic sciences in the southwestern region. This program is designed to not only address workforce challenges, but also establish research collaborations to tackle critical issues such as reducing the forensic evidence backlog, new method development and validation, and increased efficiency.
Institute for Community Justice and Racial Equity (ICJRE)
Reflecting SIUE’s commitment to anti-racism, equity, diversity, and inclusion, the Campus will also house an Institute for Community Justice and Racial Equity (ICJRE). By extending services, programming, and training opportunities to Belleville, SIUE will partner with the community to actively address how racism and social inequities continue to impact our communities. The Center will also expand educational opportunities for the region’s residents, encourage degree completion, and meet the workforce needs of employers through innovative programming such as alternative digital credentials and other industry-aligned training. Over time, SIUE will offer a combination of credit and non-credit opportunities to meet the needs of both degree-seeking students as well as those seeking to upskill and advance in their careers.
The IMPACT Academy will be offering training and opportunities for professional and personal growth that will allow individuals and leaders to better understand and challenge the systemic and pernicious nature of racism and other systems of oppression and sources of inequity. The IMPACT Academy can provide guidance in developing culturally responsive programming that will help professionals and community leaders better understand the challenges our communities face and how they can work together to confront structural inequalities together and through their ongoing efforts.
In partnership with the largest child advocacy organization in the United States, the Children’s Defense Fund, the ICJRE is also a proud sponsor of a CDF Freedom Schools® program. The CDF Freedom Schools® model provides meaningful engagement opportunities for our campus community by bringing together SIUE faculty, staff, and students with children, families, and community volunteers to impact educational equity.
Center for Crime Science and Violence Prevention (CCSVP)
The primary focus of the Center for Crime Science and Violence Prevention is to assist all stakeholders in the criminal justice field in their efforts to reduce crime and violence. The Center collaborates with criminal justice agencies, community organizations, vendors, faculty, and students to enhance public safety in the St. Louis and Southern Illinois regions. Some of the services provided by the CCSVP include grant development, data analytics, crime analysis, mapping, dashboard development, and evaluation research. CCSVP’s main roles are to assist communities with data-informed policy development, crime analysis, grant writing, training and technical assistance (TTA), consulting and (evaluation) research.
Educational Outreach and Workforce Development
SIUE has innovative workforce development programming, including the utilization of alternative digital credentials and apprenticeship models. SIUE, through the planned Center for Sustainable Communities and Entrepreneurship (SIUE’s Illinois Innovation Hub) and other offices, will work to offer appropriate and needed pathways to short-term workforce credentials that will support individuals and employers in the region. SIUE currently offers online degree completion programs in Criminal Justice, Nursing, Integrative Studies, Psychology, Business and other areas. The Belleville location will offer admissions and recruiting opportunities and provide coaching, lab access, and other support to students who wish to engage in SIUE’s degree completion programming. Additionally, SIUE will explore specialized degree programs, credentials, and degree completion programs that meet the needs of the residents of the region and align with industry needs.