Man-Tra-Con Corporation

Through Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) federal funding, Man-Tra-Con Corporation has been providing “no-cost” career guidance and employment services to job seekers since 1979. In addition, we provide recruitment services, employee-based training programs, and dislocated worker assistance to businesses located in Local Workforce Area 25 (LWA #25), comprised of Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Perry and Williamson counties. With guidance from our Chief Local Elected Officials and the Southern Illinois Workforce Development Board, we work to improve the quality of life for all customers we serve.

Our primary mission is to collaborate effectively with our workforce partners to create quality workforce solutions throughout LWA #25. In addition, Man-Tra-Con collaborates with innovative partners in economic development, healthcare, community and social services, and education to create unique solutions to the workforce challenges we face.

Man-Tra-Con supports the economic health of Southern Illinois by providing services designed to build a quality workforce. We devote special effort to identifying the needs of local employers so that we can provide the quality workers each needs. 

Man-Tra-Con is governed by a Board of Directors, and led by our Chief Executive Officer Robyn Russell.

About Our Chief Executive Officer

Robyn Russell, a southern Illinois native, comes to Man-Tra-Con from Champion Community Investments (CCI) where she served 4 years as Executive Director. CCI offers business loans and technical assistance to advance business and job growth in the Southern Illinois region. Prior to CCI, Russell worked 17 years at Southern Illinois University in the Office of Economic & Regional Development, finishing as the Director of Business Development & International Trade. She has consulted and trained thousands of business owners/entrepreneurs through the Illinois Small Business Development Center, the Entrepreneurship Center, and the Incubator programs at SIU. Russell is also a Certified Business Advisor and an International Trade Specialist from the Illinois Entrepreneurship & Small Business Growth Association, as well as a Certified Business Incubator Manager by the National Business Incubation Association. She is a graduate of the Delta Regional Authority Leadership Institute. Russell is a proud Saluki, a dual-degree graduate of Southern Illinois University both in Journalism and Workforce Education & Development, and is Past President of the Du Quoin Chamber of Commerce. She also serves in other volunteer capacities for regional advancement such as the SI Now Business Growth & Development Committee and the Marshall Browning Hospital Rural Community Advisory Committee.

In 2018, Russell launched her own entrepreneurial consulting endeavor, Russell Business & Financial LLC, helping clients to buy and sell businesses. Additionally, Robyn has owned and operated a professional writing and resume-building service company, My Resume Café, and a small, product-based business, Made in Southern Illinois, which focused on compiling and promoting regional, agriculture-based and artisan-crafted, Southern Illinois products. Russell resides in Du Quoin with her husband, Leo, and has three daughters, Molly, Maya, and Malayna.