Dr. Jennifer Rios – Top Latinos
Fredericksburg, VA – Upper Marlboro, MD /LWW/ Dr. Jennifer Rios, CEO of PSCI-LIA, combat veteran, serial entrepreneur, doctoral-level executive, and community architect has been recognized by the Top Latinos in the 2026 edition.
From Combat Boots to the Boardroom: The Unstoppable Rise of Dr. Jennifer Rios
There are leaders who talk about breaking barriers, and then there are those who simply break them. Dr. Jennifer Rios, CEO of PSCI-LIA with offices in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and Upper Marlboro, Maryland, belongs firmly in the second category. She is a combat veteran, serial entrepreneur, doctoral-level executive, and community architect whose life story reads less like a career timeline and more like a masterclass in refusing to be defined by circumstance.
What makes her journey remarkable is not just what she has achieved. It is how deliberately, and often against significant odds, she has achieved it.
At 17 years old, Jennifer Rios made a decision that fewer than 1% of Americans will ever make. She enlisted in the United States Army.
That choice set the course for everything that followed. Over 13 years, she rose through the ranks to Staff Sergeant, Airborne, earning her jump wings and her place among the elite. She deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, Bahrain, and Kuwait in support of Special Operations Command, serving alongside some of the most mission-critical units in the U.S. military. As Brigade Ammunition Manager and NCOIC for the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne), she provided subject-matter expertise in battlefield logistics in environments where precision was not optional.
She came home decorated. A Joint Services Commendation Medal and multiple Army Commendation Medals mark a record of service that goes far beyond what most will ever see. But for Dr. Rios, those deployments were not the finish line. They were the foundation.
The discipline forged in combat, the ability to make sound decisions under pressure, and the instinct to lead when others hesitate, all of it transferred directly into the business world she was about to build.
In 2016, while many of her peers were still finding their footing, Dr. Rios founded Pinnacle Software Consulting, Inc. Her vision was clear: build a nationally recognized management consulting and IT firm capable of serving federal, state, and local government clients at the highest level. She did exactly that.
The road was not smooth. In 2020, she faced a legal battle over ownership of the company she had built with her own hands. The details were difficult. The stakes were personal. But Dr. Rios fought back, and she won, reclaiming 100% ownership of Pinnacle Software Consulting. That victory is not a footnote in her story. It is a defining chapter. It is proof that resilience, when matched with legal standing and sheer determination, is a force no obstacle can permanently withstand.
She did not slow down after that. In 2022, she launched VARIDD LLC, a construction and grounds maintenance firm that expanded her reach into physical infrastructure and facilities management. Through this work, she cares for national veteran cemeteries, her way of showing respect to her fellow comrades who have passed. Then, in April 2025, she completed the strategic acquisition of Linkitall LLC, bringing healthcare services, facility support, and workforce development into her growing portfolio. That acquisition made her one of the very few small business owners to successfully navigate a full federal entity merger. It was a move that required not just business acumen but the kind of strategic patience that only comes from years of high-stakes experience.
Today, Dr. Rios leads PSCI-LIA with more than 20 years of collective experience supporting federal, state, and commercial clients. The company delivers across a wide range of disciplines, including strategic consulting, systems engineering, software development, staffing, logistics, and construction management. The team operates with the precision of people who understand what mission success actually looks like, because their CEO has lived it.
In the federal marketplace, certifications are currency. Few small business owners hold more of it than Dr. Rios.
Her business portfolio carries certifications as a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned Small Business (EDWOSB), 8(a), HUBZone, Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), and Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB). Together, these designations represent a rare convergence of eligibility, credibility, and competitive advantage. They signal to every government agency and commercial partner that her companies have been rigorously vetted and are positioned to deliver.
That kind of portfolio does not happen by accident. It happens because someone did the work at every level.
Education, for Dr. Rios, was never a box to check. It was a pursuit she approached the same way she approached everything else: with intensity and a clear purpose.
She completed an Associate of Arts in General Studies from Central Texas College and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science with a minor in History from Campbell University at Fort Bragg, finishing both degrees in just two and a half years. She then earned a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Digital Entrepreneurship from Strayer University in 2020.
Her academic journey reached its pinnacle in 2024 when she earned a Doctorate in Business Administration with a specialization in Leadership from Capella University. That achievement places her among the 1% of Latina women in the United States who hold a doctoral degree. It is a statistic that deserves to be said plainly, without qualification. One percent. In a country of more than 60 million Latinos, the number of Latina women who have reached that academic level is vanishingly small. Dr. Rios is one of them.
Her academic excellence earned her membership in the SALUTE Veterans National Honor Society, the National Society of Leadership and Success, and the Delta Alpha Pi International Honor Society, where she served as Chapter President. She also holds a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute, along with advanced certifications in high-growth digital startup management, digital business operations, and technology and product management.
Professional success, for Dr. Rios, has always come with a responsibility to community. Her record of public service reflects someone who views leadership as an obligation, not a privilege.
She founded the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Prince George’s County, creating a platform for minority-owned businesses to grow, network, and gain access to opportunities they might otherwise never reach. She serves as President of the Maryland Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation and was appointed by Governor Wes Moore to his Commission on Hispanic Affairs, a position she will hold through 2028.
In 2024, the Maryland State Archives recognized her as one of just 20 Latino leaders who have shaped the history of Maryland. That recognition does not come from lobbying for it. It comes from years of work that left a visible mark on communities and institutions.
She has also been named a 2025 Most Admired CEO, recognized among the Daily Record’s Leading Women Under 40, and included in the Incredible Inc. 50. She has received the Maryland Hispanic Leadership Award and a Governor’s Citation for Small Business Military Appreciation.
Currently, she is a candidate for Prince George’s County Council At-Large. She is not running as a career politician. She is running as a service-disabled veteran, a doctoral-level leader, and someone who has spent decades actually solving problems in the communities she wants to serve.
It would be easy to look at the résumé of Dr. Jennifer Rios and see a list of accomplishments. But the more honest reading is a story about what becomes possible when discipline, courage, and vision are applied consistently over time.
She enlisted at 17 and served in four combat zones. She built a company from nothing, fought to keep it, and won. She pursued a doctorate while running businesses and raising a family. She built institutions that outlast any single person’s tenure. And she has done all of it as a Latina woman in industries and spaces that were not designed with her in mind.
PSCI-LIA exists because of everything she survived and built. Its 20-plus years of experience serving federal, state, and commercial clients are not just years on a company timeline. They are a reflection of who leads it: someone who understands accountability, values precision, and has never needed a title to prove her ability to deliver.
Dr. Jennifer Rios is not waiting for the room to make space for her. She is building the room. And she is holding the door open for others to follow. She has been doing it for a very long time.
Top Latinos is a prestigious New York publication dedicated to honoring the achievements of the Latino community. They meticulously identify and honor outstanding Latino professionals nationwide who have reached impressive levels of success in their respective fields. By showcasing their accomplishments, they aim to foster growth and appreciation of the Latino industry and culture. Since their establishment in 2010, Top Latinos has been wholeheartedly committed to fulfilling their mission of bringing awareness to the exceptional contributions made by the Latino professional and executive community.