Sherri Berger, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) acting deputy director for policy, communications and legislative affairs and a USF College of Public Health (COPH) alumna, has received the Robert W. Jones Award for Executive Leadership.

The award recognizes and honors federal career executives for the Senior Executive Service (members serve in key positions just below presidential appointees) who have demonstrated superior dedication and leadership in achieving their agency’s mission and nurturing future managers.

“I am deeply honored to accept this award and to continue answering the call of public service every day,” said Berger, who concentrated in epidemiology and graduated from the COPH in 1996 with an MSPH.  “I would be remiss in accepting this award if I didn’t recognize the efforts of the more than 12,000 people at CDC who are hard at work, day in and day out, protecting the health of our nation.”

Berger has been at the CDC for more than 26 years. And in that time, she’s held a variety of leadership roles, from chief operating officer to associate director of the Financial Management Office to a brand chief of public health policy, among others.

“I’ve always felt that life is about learning and growing,” she said. “And I’ve tried to make the most out of every opportunity. While I was a scientist, for example, I took additional leadership training. And while I was a leader, I took additional financial management training. I always volunteered to do things that were outside the scope of my job so that I could expose myself to different things. I was thinking about those next steps in my career path and getting myself ready for that.”

And for Berger, it’s not just about her own career path, but also about those who work alongside her.

“What I’ve tried to do in my career is find junior staff and give them opportunities to come to meetings and be exposed to decision-making processes and things that they wouldn’t normally get to see early in their career,” she commented.

Berger says she’s appreciative of her time at USF and credits the college with helping her get to where she is today.

“The COPH faculty, staff and students helped me reach my full potential, and what I have achieved professionally, with their support, has helped me earn this award,” she added.

Story by Parker Guevarra and Donna Campisano