Carlos Rios-Santiago joined Mott in 2018 as a program assistant working in two Civil Society program areas: Strengthening Civic Space and Enhancing Community Philanthropy. As a student, he studied economics and public policy and has a keen interest in fiscal policy, data management and econometrics. He earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in public policy from Michigan State University (MSU). During his studies at MSU, he participated in the Federal Reserve Challenge and received the Norma and Gordan Guyer Public Policy Internship award.

A native of Puerto Rico, Rios-Santiago has called Michigan home since he was 10 years old and is bilingual in English and Spanish. He enjoys cooking — especially stews and curry recipes from all over the world — and is a comic book fan.