Erin is a native of Illinois and grew up in Yazoo City, Mississippi. She earned a Bachelor’s in Architecture from the University of Kentucky in 2002. Before founding o p e n studio in 2020, Erin was co-owner of in situ studio, which she founded in 2010, with business partner, Matt Griffith. Prior to that, Erin worked for over eight years at Frank Harmon Architect.

Erin has a long history of involvement in various community outreach and volunteer programs. She served on the Raleigh Historic Development Commission for two years and the Raleigh Planning Commission for six. In 2010, Erin joined the AIA North Carolina (AIANC) Board of Directors as the Young Architects Forum Director and was President in 2017. She is also a founder of ACTIVATE NC, which is a statewide AIANC outreach initiative to strengthen the civic role in architecture and design, and CONNECTIONS 81.2, an initiative that promotes architect-led development visioning. Erin occasionally teaches design studios as Professor in Practice at NCSU College of Design’s School of Architecture. In 2018, she was awarded a national Young Architects Award by the AIA and in 2020, received her Fellowship and the AIA NC William Deitrick Service Medal.