Sheriff John Matz has been with the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office since 1990. During his tenure, he has held the rank of Sergeant, Lieutenant, and Captain, before being sworn in as Sheriff in 2011, where he is currently serving his third term. Throughout his career, John has been heavily involved in the agency’s SWAT Team, serving in all facets to include Tactical Commander. John also has 30 years of military experience in the Wisconsin Army National Guard retiring as Command Sergeant Major in 2017. John was deployed along with his son to Iraq in 2009-2010 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. John holds a Bachelor of Science from UW Oshkosh, and is a graduate of the National Sheriff’s Academy as well as the FBI National Academy.

Carrie has worked for the Appleton Police Department since 2008 in the patrol unit. She is an Evidence Technician, Bike Officer, Refugee Liaison, CIT Officer, on the Peer Support Team, Honor Guard, Appleton Police Benevolent Association Secretary, and a Dementia Specialist. Carrie has a strong passion for teaching law enforcement about dementia response and making communities more dementia friendly.

Holly Nilles has been the Business Office Manager and Administrative Assistant at the City of Verona, WI Police Department since August of 2010. She loves to serve, whether it be for members of her department or for the community. Outside VPD, Holly is a Revelation Wellness Certified Group Fitness Instructor and NGA (National Gym Association) Certified Personal Trainer, and she uses those certifications by offering free fitness classes to anyone in or near her community, as well as online. She has been active as a fitness instructor for the past 17 years, but since 2016 she has taught fitness solely on a volunteer basis through her fitness ministry, Forward Fit. Holly loves pouring into others and teaches her classes with an emphasis on training the heart and allowing the body to follow.

Detective Jeffrey Nelson was an experienced law enforcement officer with the Barron County Sheriff’s Department in northwest Wisconsin. He worked as a major crimes Detective for 21 years primarily working homicide and death investigation as well as other major crime investigations. Detective Nelson also served as the Tactical Team Commander for the Barron/Rusk County regional Emergency Response Team (ERT) for approximately 14 years and was a a member of the tactical team for over 23 years. He has advanced training from the Wisconsin - Department of Justice and FBI in the areas of advanced interviews and interrogations as well as major crime scene investigations. Detective Nelson also served as a Director for the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Officers Association (WLEOA) for 7 years and was the President of the Barron Area School District –Board of Education for 9 years and serves on multiple other community boards and associations.

Special Agent Joe Welsch has over 31 years law enforcement experience. For 16 years, S/A Welsch was employed by the Sauk County Sheriff’s Office, Wisconsin where he worked in the patrol and detective divisions. For the last 4 years working at the Sauk County Sheriff’s Office, S/A Welsch was promoted to supervisor of criminal investigations. S/A Welsch has been employed as a Special Agent with the Wisconsin Department of Justice- Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) for the past 15 years. S/A Welsch is currently assigned to the Major Crimes Bureau, where his primary responsibility involves investigating homicides, missing persons and officer-involved deaths. He has been assigned as lead investigator in several high-profile homicides and death investigations.

Dr. Kim Olson serves as the Associate Vice President of College Effectiveness at FVTC and has been with the College for 19 years. Kim’s path to her career and education has been anything but traditional. Like many our attendees, Dr. Olson started her career as an Administrative Professional in the Manufacturing industry. Over time, and with additional education and the support of others, Dr. Olson transitioned to various other roles, including College faculty, Department Chair, Associate Dean, Dean, and now Associate Vice President. Dr. Olson first earned an Associate Degree as a Medical Secretary. From there, Kim continued to attend classes part-time, earning a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and, in 2019, a doctoral degree.

Kyle is a Shareholder in the Labor and Employment Law Section at von Briesen & Roper, s.c. He advises both public & private sector employers with employment- and labor-related issues including regulatory compliance, antidiscrimination practices, contractual and workplace policy matters, and personnel management. He handles numerous aspects of labor-management relations from advising clients during union organizing campaigns to serving as chief negotiator during collective bargaining negotiations. He also advises clients regarding complex internal investigations and effectively resolving personnel disputes. Kyle also assists clients with crisis communications and effectively handling crisis situations, and he regularly advises clients regarding Wisconsin’s Public Records Law and Open Meetings Law.

Richard Kester has been a Communications instructor at Fox Valley Technical College for 25 years. Among the many courses he teaches, he focuses on Oral and Interpersonal Communication, Applied Communication, and Written Communication. He has worked with a wide array of students from teaching GED/HSED in the Outagamie Jail, working with alternative high school students, helping ESL students with English speaking skills, training other instructors in FVTC’s Training and Development Department, and instructing students of all ages from 17 – 80. To reach as many students as possible, Richard’s modalities have utilized closed-circuit televised classes, live video conferencing, Internet classes, and in the past 5 years, virtual classes. Most recently, in 2021, he has begun working as a trainer in the Business and Industry Department at FVTC.

Steve customizes keynote presentations and training sessions that deliver engagement strategies for attracting and retaining Millennials, empowering Generation X, capturing Boomer wisdom and cultivating future leadership by leveraging the strengths of each generation. Steve has shared his message with audiences across the country. Steve is also the creator of “The Pitch!”, a non-profit business contest that puts the next generation of workforce talent in charge to create a start-up company and make the perfect sales pitch! Teenage students learn business concepts, practice soft skills and networking and compete for prizes!