Olsson engineer Blake Casper was selected as Nebraska’s top young public works leader by his professional peers. The Nebraska chapter of the American Public Works Association honored Casper with its 2026 Public Works Young Leader of the Year on November 3, 2026 in Kearney, Nebraska.

Casper was selected for his leadership, innovation, service, support of sustainability, and contributions to the public works profession.

"Go to events. Get OK with being uncomfortable sitting at a table of strangers. The soft skills in engineering are hugely beneficial to you." 

Olsson vice president Aaron Keller said Casper is constantly striving to improve.  

“Blake is always working to find more efficient ways to use the tools at our disposal,” Keller said. “But what I really appreciate is that he doesn’t keep that knowledge to himself. He’s always teaching others.”

Mike Golka – an Olsson senior engineer and Casper’s manager – agreed with that praise.

“Blake has been instrumental in helping our team develop new methodologies in plan production,” Golka said. “But what sticks out to me is that he makes the time to help train our newer staff. He understands that our team will only continue to get better when knowledge is shared.”

Casper has been involved in the design of many Nebraska roadway and bridge projects. He also has experience working on transportation projects in Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Montana, and Kansas.

He earned a civil engineering degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While in college, he spent three years working as an intern at Olsson. After graduation in 2020, he was hired as an assistant engineer. He earned his professional engineer license in 2024.

“My time as an intern was really influential,” Casper said. “A lot of people here at Olsson mentored me. They really influenced me in how I look at infrastructure. They taught me how to approach a project to find the right engineering solution. But they also taught me to look at a project from the perspective of the public. Don’t only consider the technical design. Make sure you think about how the public is going to interact with this structure.”

Casper loves to see the fruits of his labor. One of his roadway projects is on a route near his home in Omaha.

“It’s really satisfying to see. When that intersection is done, I get to drive through an intersection that is going to be safer. People are going to have a much easier time crossing that intersection. It’s a project that’s going to positively impact the lives of my neighbors without them even realizing it. And I get to say to myself, I helped make that happen. That really drives me to do good work.”

Through his involvement with APWA, Casper has been able to form solid relationships with peers outside of his day-to-day work.

“Most transportation projects involve coordination between multiple agencies and municipalities. It’s helpful to be able to pick up the phone and talk to the different people involved when you already have a relationship. That’s been a big benefit from my involvement with APWA.”

As for young professionals who want to follow in his path, he had some advice.

“I always push young people to get involved. Go to events. Go to conferences. Get OK with being uncomfortable sitting a table of strangers,” he said. “Introduce yourself. The soft skills in engineering are hugely beneficial to you.”