Erinn Murphy, College Counselor

Erinn Murphy was a counselor at Carbondale Community High School, a rural school in southern Illinois, for more than a decade, but four years ago, she officially became a college counselor -- not only was she the first at CCHS, she was the first college counselor in the entire region. In her role, Erinn focused especially on identifying and supporting underrepresented students and developed an annual College & Career guide to better support students and families. Erinn has also been very involved in Illinois ACAC, is the co-chair of IACAC's High School Counselor Professional Development Committee and won the 2021 Outstanding Educator Award from U Chicago (she was nominated by a student!). 

Erinn earned her bachelor's in business at Eastern Illinois University. After a stint as an Annual Fund Manager for the Nature Conservancy and a year with the Peace Corps in Morocco where she taught business skills to local shopkeepers and worked with a women's carpet collective, Erinn headed south for her master's in education and school counseling from Southern Illinois University. 

Erinn’s family (including her husband, 13-year-old son, and 2 basset hounds) enjoys spending their time traveling across the country. Erinn loves making cards out of New Yorker cartoons, will read from dawn until dusk if given the chance, loves her guilty pleasure Bravo reality shows, and believes that every question (and the humans and curiosities behind them) matters and is worthy of an answer. 

Education & Experience

B.A., Business, Eastern Illinois University

M.A., Education and School Counseling, Southern Illinois University

Co-Chair, IACAC's High School Counselor Professional Development Committee

2021 Outstanding Educator Award, University of Chicago

Professional Organization Memberships

NACAC: National Association for College Admission Counseling