Meet the Panelists
Samantha
Since graduating Stanford in 2022, Sam has built her experience in the field of Autism science from various angles. Working first in New York as a Communications Associate for the Autism Science Foundation, she honed her ability to translate cutting-edge research for a variety of audiences. As Ben loves to remind people, Sam then went on to play rugby at the international level, taking a year to represent South Africa across multiple tours. After sustaining a career-ending injury she shifted focus to academia, working as a Research Assistant in the WAVES lab at Florida Atlantic University before making her way to King’s College London in the UK.
Sam’s work at King’s focuses on translating the outcomes of the EU-based AIMS-2-Trials consortium into tangible impact for researchers, the autism community, and policy makers. When she’s not behind her laptop, Sam is lucky to work with families at the BabyLab at Birkbeck, University of London, looking at development of ADHD and ASD traits throughout early childhood. She hopes to pursue a doctorate in the future, likely in cognitive neuroscience.
Ben has always and will continue to be Sam’s inspiration. She has learned far more from Ben than she could ever hope to teach him. Sam hopes to bring that same level of empathy, humour, and passion into everything she does.
Amanda
Amanda Lopez is the Lead Speech-Language Pathologist, Programs and Projects Specialist at Els for Autism and is approaching her tenth year in the field. Her commitment to supporting the lives of autistic individuals and their families began in childhood, inspired by her younger brother, Georgie. Her family’s journey navigating the world of therapeutic services and the public school system shaped her views on the importance of communication to ensure each person can advocate for themselves and create meaningful connections with others.
In her role at Els for Autism, Amanda is a treating clinician and supports families and caregivers through parent training programs. She collaborates with families and therapists globally to support them in implementing best practices while caring for their loved one with Autism. As of late, a joy of Amanda’s has been her work with the Sibling Workshops hosted by Els for Autism and facilitating the adult virtual sibling support group, connecting with siblings across the country. Her work is grounded in family-centered practices that empower caregivers, strengthen support systems, and create meaningful, inclusive experiences for autistic individuals and their families.
Evee
Evee is a clinical researcher living in Pittsburgh with undergraduate and master’s degrees from University of Pittsburgh. She has worked on several human clinical trials focusing on long term effects of HIV and supportive measures for breast cancer patients. Her brother Tommy is a professional jazz musician, and he comes to visit Evee in Pittsburgh to play music frequently. Outside of work, Evee enjoys biking, running, knitting, and hanging out with her friends.
Maximilian
Max is a DNA repair scientist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center starting his graduate degree soon at Mount Sinai. His younger brother, Matthew, has a form of autism that requires constant care and is believed to derive from a mutation in the CHD8 gene. Matthew, while immeasurably taller, is a year younger than Max at 20 years old and is truly a gentle giant.
Nathan
Nathan’s older sibling, Charles, has a rare genetic disorder, Phelan-McDermid Syndrome, resulting in profound intellectual disability and debilitating seizures daily. Nathan has been inspired by his brother’s daily challenges and the hardships faced by families like his own. As a current medical student at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, he plans to pursue a career as a Child Neurologist.
His research interests include precision medicine approaches to treating neurodevelopmental disorders and the use of neuromodulation as a diagnostic and therapeutic modality for refractory epilepsy. In his free time, Nathan enjoys swimming with his brother Charles, is an avid runner, racing in several distance races across the United States, and is an outdoors enthusiast, looking for any opportunity to bike, camp, hike, or climb.”
Lauren
Lauren is a senior at Yale, where she is majoring in Cognitive Science. Her sister Jodie has intellectual disability and autism, and Lauren has volunteered in programs for both children with developmental disabilities and their siblings. At Yale, she is a research assistant at the Yale Child Study Center. Lauren plans to become a physician.
Amy
