Testimonials
“Erin’s attention to detail, ability to root out errors, and respect for deadlines have been a great asset to our books. Her proofreading skills are solid!”
--Terry Deal, assistant director of production editorial, the Random House Publishing Group
"Erin is always so easy and fun to work with! She catches the small things in both copy and design that our eyes can't after multiple passes. It's great to have such a reliable proofreader on our list!"
—Kylee Hayes, editorial project director, The Quarto Group
Erin and I worked together for a decade, at the award-winning newspapers of North Jersey Media Group of the Gannett/USA Today network and later MontclairLocal.news, she in the capacities as researcher/reporter for a variety of topics and as everybody's proofreader. Erin came through for the team, story after story, with attention to detail, catching the typos, correcting grammar, and more, in a timely fashion, usually under the tight deadlines for both the weekly print editions and frequently daily online posts. Erin is always a pleasure to work with, intelligent, focused, diligent, well-read, and witty.
-Adam Anik, photographer, adamanikphoto.com
Erin Roll and I worked together on the startup print weekly Montclair Local (founded 2017), where she had the school district beat and also did general assignment reporting, and I was the copy editor. She’s a diligent reporter and writer who turns in clean copy on time (yay!). Erin’s work has been recognized by the New Jersey Press Association for investigative reporting, feature writing, and headline writing. She’s a good colleague on collaborative projects, including feature articles and breaking news. Outside of the news business, she has wide-ranging interests; she’s an outdoorswoman and a sci-fi aficionado. She happens to be a great baker, too, so see if you can snag a scone along with an article or profile.
-Elizabeth Sheedy, copy editor, Shelterforce.org
-All affiliations are for identification purposes.
Professional Awards
New Jersey Press Association
With other staff members, helped Montclair Local win the General Excellence Award in 2018, 2019, and 2020.
2021 Lloyd P. Burns Award for Responsible Journalism - Public Service – First Place: Shared award with rest of Montclair Local staff, for reporting on discrimination against AAPI residents, and the efforts to counter it.
2021 Reporting, Writing, and Illustration - Fresh Approach to Routine Reporting – First Place: Shared award with Montclair Local edit-or in chief Louis Hochman. For reporting on the reopening of the Montclair schools after the COVID-19-related closures, and the questions that were still unanswered.
2021 General Coronavirus/COVID-19 Coverage – First Place: Shared award with Montclair Local staff writers Talia Wiener and Diego Bartesaghi, for coverage of COVID-19 news.
2020 First Amendment Award – First Place: Shared award with Montclair Local staff writers Jaimie Julia Winters, Rebecca Jones, and Gwen Orel.
2020 Special Subject Writing – First Place, Weekly Division: Shared with Montclair Local staff writers Jaimie Julia Winters and Andrew Garda.
2018 News Writing – First Place, Weekly Division: For coverage of the August 2018 flash flood’s impact on Montclair.
2018 General Typography and Layout – First Place, Weekly Division: Shared award with Montclair Local editors Kevin Meacham, Andrea Bondy, and Jaimie Julia Winters.
2018 Enterprise Reporting – Third Place, Weekly Division: Shared award with Montclair Local staff writer Gwen Orel.
2016 Interpretive Writing – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500: Shared award with Belleville Times staff writer Roman Uschak.
2016 Best Lede – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500: Awarded for three ledes in Glen Ridge Voice. Example: “A proposed new vape shop has several residents blowing smoke out their ears.”
2016 Crime, Police and Courts Reporting – Second Place, Weekly Under 6,500: Shared award with Nutley Sun staff writer Hasime Kukaj
2016 Special Subject Writing, Weekly Under 6,500 – Second Place
2016 Education Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2015 Special Subject Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2015 Business and Economic Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2014 Crime, Police and Courts Reporting – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2014 Investigative Reporting - First and Second Place, Weekly Under 6,500: For coverage of the investigation into theft charges against Glen Ridge’s borough registrar.
2013 Headline Writing – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500: For three headlines that appeared in the Glen Ridge Voice in 2013: “There’s much ado about the loo;” “Splitting wood - or splitting hairs";” “Vote here – but where’s ‘here?’”
2013 Feature Writing – Second Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2013 Interpretive Writing – Second Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2013 Special Subject Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2012 Feature Writing – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500: For a four-part series on the centennial of the Glen Ridge (NJ) Public Library, founded in 2012.
2012 Headline Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2011 Business and Economic Writing – Second Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2010 Education Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
2009 Robert P. Kelly Award – First Place, Weekly Under 6,500: Awarded for best work by a full-time reporter who has been in the business for less than a year. For coverage of death of musician Gerry Niewood, a Glen Ridge resident, in Continental Flight 3407 crash in Buffalo.
2009 Arts and Entertainment Writing – Third Place, Weekly Under 6,500
New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists
2019 Tim O’Brien Award – Third Place: Awarded for best use of public records in a story. For reporting on absenteeism rates in the Montclair, NJ schools.
Academic Honors
Invited to present original graduate-level research papers at academic conferences in 2016:
2016 Modern Language Association Convention, Hartford, CT: Was one of six panelists for a panel talk: “Forgetting to Remember: Pathologizing Cultural Amnesia.” Presented paper entitled “Striking at the Roots: Memory and Trauma in Le Guin’s The Telling and City of Illusions.”
2016 University of Rhode Island (Kingston) GradCon: Presented paper entitled “A Gam Between Blithedale and the Pequod: Hawthorne, Melville, and the Idea of Community.”
2014 Lawrence Conrad Memorial Scholarship: Awarded to graduate students at Montclair State University for excellence in American literature studies.
Inducted into three honor societies at Christopher Newport University from 2004-2008: Sigma Tau Delta (English); Pi Delta Phi (French); and Alpha Chi (for juniors and seniors in top 10 percent of class academically).