Erin Carroll joined Pepperdine Athletics in August 2020 and was promoted to Director of Academic Support and Student-Athlete Development in August 2025 after serving as Academic Support Coordinator for five years.
In this role, Carroll is responsible for providing academic support for Pepperdine’s beach volleyball, women's volleyball, men's volleyball, water polo, women's tennis and men's golf teams. She also works with the university’s career development program, helps plan the summer success program and assists with the Waves Leadership Council.
Carroll's Building Waves professional development program has helped foster strong bonds between current Waves and alumni dating back as far as the Class of 1979. The program helps student-athletes clarify their career interests, establish connections with alumni and industry professionals, and build confidence in their transferable skills. The program includes resume and career skills workshops, one-on-one mentoring, life beyond sport discussions, and networking events with Pepperdine alumni where many of whom were student-athletes themselves.
In 2024–25, the program engaged over 80 student-athletes across 12 programs and all four class years in a variety of workshops, events, and mentorship opportunities focused on career preparation and personal growth. At the conclusion of the academic year, the Pepperdine Athletics recorded its highest-ever department-wide GPA.
Prior to Pepperdine, Carroll spent four years creating university-level social science curriculum and lessons for Study.com, an online learning platform. After earning her master's degree in international relations from the University of New South Wales, located in Sydney, Australia, in 2013, she taught in high schools in Australia and Germany. Overall, she has a decade of experience teaching English, U.S. history and all subject matters both as a full-time and as a substitute teacher.
Originally from Cerritos, Calif., Carroll graduated from Pepperdine in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in history. As a member of Pepperdine’s women’s soccer team from 2005-07, she helped the Waves make the Elite Eight in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. She also interned in the athletics department from 2008-09.
Formerly Erin Bay, she married Paul Carroll, a fellow Pepperdine graduate who was an All-American men's volleyball player. He later served as the program's associate head coach. They have two sons, Nolan and Flynn, and a daughter, Josie.
