Elizabeth D. Rios, Ed.D

Rev. Dr. Elizabeth "Liz" Rios is from Manhattan, now living in South FL, who founded Passion2Plant, one of the only national church planting networks founded AND led by an Afro-Boricua woman. She is a spiritual daughter of the Primitive Christian Church (PCC) and the Latino Pastoral Action Center (LPAC). At the age of 11, she discerned a call to leadership. Dr. Rios has served as a nonprofit executive, higher education administrator, and pastor and has also served on several national boards, most recently joining Sojourners. She teaches, preaches, and writes about women in ministry, workplace culture, civic engagement, and church planting. She has written for various national magazines and has contributed to various books, including "The Women Are Warriors" in Latino Religions and Civic Activism, published by Oxford University Press. Dr. Rios is mentioned in the Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America and Latinas in the United States: A Historical Encyclopedia. She has received numerous recognitions, including being named one of twelve Hispanic Women of Distinction for her South Florida work and being inducted into the prestigious Martin Luther King Jr. College of Ministers and Laity Board of Preachers in 2023. She is now an ordained Disciples of Christ minister and is married to Rev. Hiram Rios. Dr. Rios has an MA in Management (Regent Univ), a EdD in Organizational Leadership & Adult Education (Nova Southeastern Univ) and a DMin in Leadership focused on Latino Pentecostal Church Planting and Civic Activism (Southeastern Univ). In 2025, she will graduate from Union Theological Seminary with an MA in Social Justice. Her joy in life is her family, Samuel (26) and Daniel, who transitioned to glory on his 23rd birthday. Learn more about her work at Elizabeth Rios dot com or reach out at drlizrios at gmail dot com