Appalachian State University is a public comprehensive university, offering a wide variety of degree programs at the baccalaureate, master's, and intermediate levels as well as the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership. With a distinctively residential campus and a faculty and staff characterized by high quality and broad diversity of professional skills, Appalachian takes as its mission the practice and propagation of scholarship. This is accomplished particularly through instruction, but also through the research, creative, and service activities of the university community. Appalachian is committed to excellence in its undergraduate and graduate educational programs, while continuing to serve as a center of cultural and professional activity within its state and region.