Mark Michalko

Mark Michalko serves as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of the North Carolina Education Lottery, a role he has held since March 2018. Under his leadership, the lottery has achieved record sales and increased returns to education, building on his decades of experience in both U.S. and international gaming.

Michalko’s lottery career began in 1980 as legal counsel for the Ohio Lottery. In 1985 he became the founding executive director of the California State Lottery, where he drove record revenue and profitability in its first year of operation. He later served as the founding CEO of a publicly listed company that operated the first national draw lottery in the Philippines.

He held senior leadership positions with major gaming suppliers, including Intralot, where he led the company’s expansion in Asia, and IGT, where he served as Vice President and Managing Director of IGT’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa operations based in London, preceded by five years heading IGT’s Asia business from Macau.

Michalko was inducted into the Lottery Industry Hall of Fame in 2019 in recognition of his contributions to the sector. He holds a B.S. in Government and Political Science from John Carroll University and a J.D. from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.