K.A. Ellis is a theological ethicist, author, researcher, and professor whose life has taken her from Broadway stages to the frontlines of the global persecuted church.

Ellis brings the instincts of both worlds to everything she writes. A classically trained actress (Yale School of Drama) with television and national touring theatre credits, Ellis spent years honing the craft of telling true stories before turning her full attention to theology and research. She holds graduate degrees from Yale University, Westminster Theological Seminary, and an PhD from the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies.

From 2019 to 2026, Ellis served as founding Director of the Edmiston Center for Christian Endurance Studies, a global research initiative focused on Christians who suffer for their faith. Her particular focus has been Soviet and post-Soviet societies — places where the church was pressed underground and where the practice of holding fast became a matter of life and death. She trains leaders, builds networks, and works to amplify indigenous voices in the world’s most restricted regions.

She is married to theologian and author Dr. Carl F. Ellis, Jr., and she writes at K.A. Ellis on Substack.