The University of North Carolina at Asheville is distinctive within the public higher education system of North Carolina in its primary mission: to offer an undergraduate liberal arts education of superior quality for serious students. The mission of Disability Services is to provide students with disabilities with the advocacy and support for reaching their educational goals.

The ultimate aim of the university is to provide students the best possible opportunity to acquire the skills, knowledge and understanding necessary to pursue their goals, to find meaning in their lives, and to take their place as contributing citizens of a changing society. The specific goals of the Office of Disability Services are:

• To insure that all students with disabilities have access to an equitable educational and campus living environment.
• To work with administration and facilities management to insure students a barrier-free environment: access to facilities and instructional material.
• To serve as a liaison between students with disabilities and the faculty to insure that the highest standards of a liberal arts education are met.
• To educate the wider campus community about disability.
• To advise the student organization dealing with advocacy for students with disabilities, Equal Access.