Shannon Burger, a Chattanooga native, received her Bachelor of Science in Finance from Tennessee Wesleyan University, followed by her MBA from Lincoln Memorial University. She is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Tennessee and has been invited to participate in numerous continuing education programs over the years, including the Health Care Executive Program offered by the UCLA Anderson School of Management. As a doctoral candidate at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Shannon is currently working on her dissertation, which focuses on the financial impact of national and state health policies.
Shannon works tirelessly to offer vision and direction that moves the organization’s mission forward. Under her leadership as Chief Executive Officer at Cempa Community Care, the organization has expanded access to the medically underserved, enhanced operational efficiency, achieved numerous programmatic goals, and boosted contributions and sponsorships. With an entrepreneurial spirit and a passion for the people who are impacted by the work that Cempa provides, she continues to make an impact by serving on local, regional, and national boards, educating around policies and procedures, or providing mentorship and training opportunities that set staff members up for success. Shannon remains heavily focused on enhancing access to care, creating health equity, ensuring programmatic integrity, and continuously adapting to better meet community needs.
During her time at Cempa, Shannon has led the organization to earn numerous awards and distinctive nominations, including recognition as the Chattanooga, Tenn., area’s 2019 Community Impact Award winner at the Champions of Health Care award ceremony hosted by the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Most recently, Cempa was honored with the State of Tennessee Governor’s Award of Excellence for the organization’s efforts to deliver much-needed care in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a well-respected healthcare executive locally, regionally, and nationally, Shannon has landed a wide range of speaking engagements, media coverage, and opportunities to testify at the state and federal levels. She has served as a speaker at nationally recognized conferences, participated in numerous roundtable discussions, featured as an expert in congressional hearings, was recently recognized as a Social Impact Hero by Authority Magazine, was selected as one of Chatter Magazine’s 20 Under 40 in 2020, and is a graduate of Leadership Chattanooga, Class of 2021.
Nationally, Shannon serves as president of the board of directors for the Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access and has routinely been selected as a national HRSA Reviewer. Regionally, she serves as the chair of the government committee and member of the healthcare committee for the Tennessee Society of CPAs and policy committee member for the Tennessee Primary Care Association. Locally, she is a board member and past president for the Association of Governmental Accountants, Chattanooga Chapter, and serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Minority Task Force, serving under the Regional Health Council. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she was appointed to the Chattanooga/Hamilton County mayor’s Joint Task Force, where she served as the Community Testing Chair.
