Ashley Elizabeth Neybert advances accessible STEM education at Independence Science

Ashley Elizabeth Neybert, PhD, is using research, curriculum design and lived experience to make science education more inclusive for blind, low-vision and other disabled students. Her work at Independence Science highlights how accessible design can expand who gets to participate in STEM.

Why it matters: - Ashley Elizabeth Neybert’s work targets a persistent gap in STEM education: many students with disabilities still face barriers in labs, course materials and career pathways. - Her approach treats accessibility as a design standard, not an afterthought, which can broaden participation for blind, low-vision, autistic and physically disabled learners.

What happened: - Ashley Elizabeth Neybert, PhD, is an education researcher, curriculum designer and accessibility advocate based in Corvallis, Oregon. - She serves as Lead Curriculum Specialist at Independence Science. - Her role includes developing accessible science curricula and helping educators build more inclusive laboratory learning environments. - Influential Women featured Neybert in a profile published August 19, 2026.

The details: - Neybert’s interest in accessibility grew after she began experiencing vision loss while studying chemistry in college. - A mentor working in accessibility introduced her to talking laboratory equipment and adaptive science tools for blind students and scientists. - Her doctoral research at Oregon State University focused on science accessibility. - Her dissertation gathered one of the largest known collections of lived experiences from blind individuals in science, spanning multiple decades. - At Independence Science, Neybert consults on inclusive education practices in addition to curriculum design. - Her work extends beyond blind and low-vision learners to students with other learning and physical needs. - Neybert’s guiding belief is that accessibility benefits everyone when it is built into science learning from the start. - She credits her grandparents with shaping her resilience, including lessons from The Little Train That Could and Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey. - Neybert also tells young women entering science and education to remember that they are better than they think they are. - She urges women to offer themselves the same compassion, rest and self-respect they often extend to others.

Between the lines: - Neybert’s career shows how personal experience can drive systems-level change in education. - Her research and curriculum work point to a broader shift in accessibility: from special accommodation for individual students to inclusive design for entire classrooms. - Her message to young women centers on confidence and self-care, which fits the broader theme of sustaining long-term participation in demanding fields.

What's next: - Neybert says she will keep advancing inclusive STEM education through research-informed practices, curriculum design and advocacy. - Her goal is to help ensure disability does not determine whether a student gets access to science learning and discovery. - More information is available through Ashley Elizabeth Neybert’s Influential Women profile and Independence Science’s website.

The bottom line: - Ashley Elizabeth Neybert is helping redefine who belongs in science by making accessibility central to how science is taught.