Ryleigh Newman

Researcher, Innovator, Community Leader

ABOUT ME AND MY GOALS

I graduated from the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College with a B.S. in Biological and Physical Sciences, concentrating in Biological Chemistry and Data Science & Analytics. I now research RNA-targeted therapeutics at the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute, and I run a nonprofit that builds adaptive equipment.

My life’s mission is to transform challenges into opportunities, drawing from my personal experiences with disabilities.

I have two disabilities: significant bilateral hearing loss and an unknown neuromuscular disease resembling Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, which severely atrophies my limb strength.

Because of the disease, I lost the ability to walk a few years ago, as my legs have minimal motor functionality. I also experience atrophy in my hands and wrists.

These symptoms make typical daily tasks challenging without creative modification; they even took the ability to do some of my favorite hobbies.

But, at the same time, have paved the path to creative adaptation!

So I build the accessibility I need, and then I make sure nobody else has to pay a premium for it. That is the thread running through everything below.

Despite the roadblocks, I am turning my hardships around to inspire others and innovate. My personal motto is to “Be Awesome.”

WHAT I AM BUILDING

Rockstar Health is the nonprofit I founded to design and produce adaptive wheelchair equipment. It became a federally recognized 501(c)(3) in 2026. We make 3D printed joystick toppers shaped for hands that a factory part was never designed for, and the software below is free for the same reason.

The Rockstar Health U-1, a 3D printed wheelchair joystick topper with a broad concave surface and two raised wings. — The U-1 topper, shaped so you can steer with the flat of your hand instead of gripping a knob.

Rockstar Health: adaptive wheelchair accessories, built as a nonprofit so the pricing follows the mission. Read the story or visit rockstarhealth.org.
InputConfig: a free macOS app that remaps controllers, mice, and MIDI devices, so input that does not fit your hands can be reshaped until it does. Read more.
YapToText: free system-wide dictation for macOS that runs entirely on device, for anyone who finds typing expensive. Read more.
CubeAura: a native Mac app for the AirCube air quality sensor, now on the Mac App Store. Read more.

Read the blog