Sherri Berger, MSPH `96, is COO at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the largest Ebola epidemic in history

The recent Ebola virus outbreak – the largest in the virus’s history – has made the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) one of the busiest places to work in the country.

Among those at the helm is chief operating officer Sherri Berger, MSPH ’96, a former principal epidemiologic investigator for the U.S. national public health institute.

“Things have been crazy here,” Berger said in an email interview. Protecting Americans during the deadly Ebola outbreak has tested her commitment to maintaining work-life balance.

All of her free time is spent with her 12 year-old son, Jacob. The two go to the theater and the movies, and take their dog for long walks.

COO since 2011, Berger oversees an office of 1,600 federal employees in Atlanta, the CDC’s headquarters, and thousands of contractors. She’s responsible for human resources, facilities management, budgeting and making sure the CDC has the resources to meet its goal – protecting Americans from health threats both here and abroad – and saving lives.

Her job also includes hosting visiting elected officials and their staffs, which recently included President Barack Obama, who stopped in to support the CDC’s efforts fighting Ebola.

Click here for the full story from the winter 2015 issue of USF’s Alumni Voice.