Stephen Ravas is AmeriCorps’ Acting Inspector General, a role he began in May 2023. Mr. Ravas oversees the Office of Inspector General (OIG), an independent office within AmeriCorps that conducts audits and investigations related to the programs and operations of AmeriCorps. The office works to detect and deter waste, fraud, and abuse at AmeriCorps, while promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness at the agency.
In his more than 10 years in the Inspector General community, Mr. Ravas served in numerous roles. Mr. Ravas’s previous AmeriCorps OIG experience includes Acting Inspector General from May 2023, Acting Deputy Inspector General from January 2022 to May 2023, and AmeriCorps OIG’s Counsel to the Inspector General from August 2019 to May 2023.
Prior to joining AmeriCorps OIG, Mr. Ravas served as Assistant Counsel to the Inspector General for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) OIG. There he was the lead attorney for investigative issues related to criminal procedure, law enforcement techniques, and the Special Agent Handbook, and participated in and provided legal counsel for multi-disciplinary investigations, audits, and inspections. Before that, Mr. Ravas served as Special Investigative Counsel for the Department of Commerce OIG, where he focused on administrative and ethics investigations and performed a detail to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia as a Special Assistant United States Attorney (SAUSA). As a SAUSA, Mr. Ravas advised and directed federal agents in ongoing investigations, and represented the United States in federal district court and in grand jury proceedings. Mr. Ravas is the recipient of several awards from the Inspector General community, including awards from the Council of Inspectors General for Integrity and Efficiency, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Mr. Ravas began his legal career as a law clerk for the Hon. Paul D. Borman, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan. He then entered the private practice of law, representing individuals and Fortune 500 companies in white-collar criminal defense matters, including alleged Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and criminal antitrust violations, and conducted internal investigations. He holds degrees from James Madison University and Wayne State University Law School, where he graduated cum laude and served as Editor-in-Chief of the Wayne Law Review. He lives in Montgomery County, Maryland, with his wife, two kids, and two fairly obedient dogs.