Mike Casper is the Co-Founder and Chief Operation Officer of Improve Your Tomorrow, Inc (IYT), an education nonprofit that for the last 10 years has worked to close the college opportunity gap and improve the life outcomes for young men of color across Northern California. Growing up in Sacramento as a low-income, first-generation college student, Mike formed a deep sense of purpose that guided him to help other young men of color in his community become scholars. After receiving his Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communications from Sacramento State, he began a mentorship program at his old high school with his Co-founder, Michael Lynch. What began as a weekly volunteer program serving 17 young men of color out of a counselor’s office, quickly formed into the organization known as IYT, which now serves thousands of members across nearly 60 school sites. Casper holds an MBA from Sacramento State and previously worked in the finance industry as an Assistant Vice President-Branch Manager for US Bank. In that role, he was responsible for managing and anticipating the needs of the branch, including driving sales, providing stellar customer service, and complying with regulation and policy requirements.

In recognition for his decade-long tenure in the youth and education justice space, Casper has been named among the top 20 Black Change Makers in Sacramento in 2023 by the Sacramento Bee, 40 under 40 by the Sacramento Business Journal, and currently sits on the board of the Elk Grove Unified School Districts’ First Foundation and a member of San Juan Unified School District’s Equity Community Collaborative. Casper enjoys traveling, playing sports, and spending time with his loved ones. Mike Casper is married to his high school sweetheart and they have four young daughters.