This Forum will discuss prevention and response strategies to potential and active violence in a variety of settings.

The speaker will be Josh Saaranen, Houghton County sheriff. Sheriff Saaranen graduated from Jeffers High School, Gogebic Community College and Northern Michigan University Regional Police Academy.  He is a 4th generation Houghton County resident.

Sheriff Saaranen started with the sheriff’s office working as a field service deputy on the road and in the jail. He became a member of a team providing active shooter/violence training. They trained hundreds of teachers, civilians, local business owners and employees to take a proactive approach in response to acts of violence. He was appointed sheriff of Houghton County in 2021 and elected in 2024. Sheriff Saaranen has completed several advanced trainings, including homicide school, investigator school, and narcotics school. He has also completed medicolegal death investigation and Train-the-Trainer training for school violence and police response.

Forum will be by Zoom only.