The Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences is responsible for providing leadership and direction for 14 instructional departments, ranging from Art to World Languages to Physical Sciences. The School has as its central mission the provision of a first-class liberal arts foundation, either for transfer, for work or for life. The School of Arts and Sciences houses numerous degree programs in addition to other wonderful facilities and learning opportunities such as the College observatory, the Environmental Center, the Cade Art Gallery and Opera AACC. As the primary provider of general education courses, A&S is proud of its highly-qualified faculty and of the students they teach, which regularly outperform students from other community colleges after they transfer to four-year colleges or universities.