
Sandra D. Bruce was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Education on December 2, 2021. Inspector General Bruce is a results-oriented leader with more than 30 years of experience directing, overseeing, managing, and conducting complex audit, inspections, and investigative-related programs. Inspector General Bruce joined the Office of Inspector General (OIG) in 2014 as Deputy Inspector General and has led the office since 2018 when Inspector General Kathleen S. Tighe retired.
Before joining the OIG, Bruce was the Assistant Inspector General for Inspections at the U.S. Department of Energy, a position she also held at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Office of Inspector General from 2006 to 2009. From 1997 to 2006, Bruce was a leader with the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, directing its Law Enforcement and Postal Service Security unit and its Computer Assisted Audit Techniques unit. From 1986 to 1997, Bruce was with the U.S. Army Audit Agency, where she began her public service career as an auditor, rising to an Audit Supervisor and Associate Program Director. Bruce was also a Legislative Fellow for Senator Carl Levin.
Inspector General Bruce has received numerous awards for her work, including a Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) Award for Excellence, Distinguished Achievement Awards, and an Exceptional Performance Award. She is also a recipient of the Excellence in Government Leadership Award presented by the Association of Government Accountants-Philadelphia Chapter. Bruce is active in the inspector general community, currently serving as a member of Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) where she chairs the PRAC’s Government Accountability Office and State and Local Oversight Subcommittee and is a member of the PRAC’s Financial Sector Work Group. Bruce also serves as chair of the CIGIE Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee and is a member of the CIGIE Audit Committee and CIGIE Information Technology Committee. Bruce previously served on the CIGIE Deputy Inspector General Work Group and the Intelligence Community Inspector General’s Assistant Inspectors General for Inspections Work Group.
Inspector General Bruce earned her Master of Science in Information Systems from Hawaii Pacific University and her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from Fayetteville State University. She graduated from Indian River High School in her home state of Delaware.
For more information on the Inspector General, contact the OIG Public Affairs Office.