Gianna Spirio, Keynote Speaker

Gianna Spirio is a 26-year old young woman and has had epileptic seizures since she was two years old. Gianna currently works at a preschool for children with disabilities and is finishing up a Master's in Early Childhood Special Education. Gianna has had nearly 13 brain surgeries in order to control her intractable epilepsy. In 2021, she had her last surgery - a successful laser ablation. Gianna has been seizure free since and is passionate about sharing her story. As an epilepsy advocate, she focuses on the importance of always having hope and being resilient during the tough times.  

Matthew P. Windrum

Matthew is a volunteer Advocacy Champion for the Epilepsy Foundation.  He lived with daily focal impaired awareness seizures for nine years, and the stress, anxiety and fatigue known to accompany them.  Fortunately, a surgical procedure that removed most of his right temporal lobe and some surrounding tissue ultimately helped him to become seizure free for the past 12 years.

Matthew is a government relations professional with experience across multiple states for such employers as Kasirer LLC, Western Governors University, The Doe Fund and the British & Japanese Consulates General in New York.  He is a volunteer consultant for Dignity Beyond Borders, which works to create safe and inclusive global communities for survivors of traumatic loss.  He lives in Croton-on-Hudson, NY with his wife, Susan, and - when they're not away at college - their son and daughter, Ryan and Emma.

Elizabeth Ng, MD
University of Connecticut School of Medicine

Dr. Elizabeth Ng is a child neurologist specializing in pediatric epilepsy (seizures) and neuromuscular disorders and an academic clinician-educator in clinical neurophysiology and electrodiagnostic medicine.  She is an assistant professor of pediatrics and neurology at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.  Prior to becoming a pediatric epileptologist and neuromuscular neurologist, Dr. Ng was a practicing general pediatrician for ten years, a gratifying and introspective period that deepened her empathy and compassion in caring for children with neurological conditions.  In addition to being part of the NAEC Level 4 Pediatric Epilepsy Center, the Pediatric MDA/Neuromuscular Clinic, and the multidisciplinary Brachial Plexus/Peripheral Nerve Injury Clinic, Dr. Ng directs the AANEM-accredited Electrodiagnostic Laboratory at Connecticut Children’s. 

Dr. Ng is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM), and the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society (ACNS).  She has been a reviewer for multiple peer-reviewed medical journals in clinical pediatrics and neurology.  She is currently an editorial board member for AAP’s Pediatrics in Review, a country editor for the Journal of Pediatric Neurology, and an associate editor for the Journal of Pediatric Epilepsy.  Dr. Ng presently serves on the professional advisory boards of the Epilepsy Foundation of Northeastern New York and the Epilepsy Foundation of Connecticut.  Dr. Ng holds specialty/subspecialty board certifications in General Pediatrics, Child Neurology, Epilepsy, Epilepsy Monitoring, Neuromuscular Medicine, and Electrodiagnostic Medicine.

Alison Kukla, MPH
Epilepsy Foundation

Alison Kukla, MPH, is the Senior Manager for Programs and Partnerships at the Epilepsy Foundation where she providers leadership for the Foundation’s SUDEP activities and bereavement support services. She also supports dissemination of epilepsy self-management programs and establishes and maintains strategic national partnerships. Alison is a public health professional and former staff in President Barack Obama’s White House and United States Environmental Protection Agency. Alison has a Master of Public Health from Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, and she is also a person with epilepsy having lived with active seizures since her diagnosis in 2006.