Wilbert Van Marsh

Wilbert Van Marsh, a 31-year veteran of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, serves as Detroit Public Schools’ Inspector General, continuing that department’s mission to uncover waste, fraud and abuse.

Van Marsh, the district’s Deputy Inspector General-Investigations since 2009, was assistant to the special agent in charge for the Federal Air Marshal Service – Department of Homeland Security from 2002 to 2007. In that role, he supervised, mentored, trained and developed a squad of 22 Air Marshals in the Detroit Field Office. 

He replaced retiring Inspector General John Bell. Bell and Van Marsh were appointed to the post by Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb in March 2009 to lead the new Office of Inspector General. 

Van Marsh worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 1976 to 2002, serving most recently as a Supervisory Special Agent from 1994 to 2002, in which he supervised a Violent Crime Major Offender and White Collar Crime Squad of 15 agents and two support personnel in Detroit. Van Marsh holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Canisius College in Buffalo, NY. 

His certifications include: Regional Inspector, Crisis Management, Major Investigation Management, Street Survival and Awareness, Ethics, EAP and EEO Cultural Diversity Training, Informant and Intelligence Development, Money Laundering and Forfeitures, General Police Training, Undercover Operations Coordination and Specialized Narcotics. He was an instructor at the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA.