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Our Mission

Uniting to champion the equality and inclusion of people

with disabilities

where we live, learn, work and play.

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Our Philosophy

P&A is concerned with asserting the human, civil and legal rights of people with disabilities, especially those who cannot articulate and act to protect deprivations. P&A operates in a manner which is consistent with the belief that people with disabilities have the same legal and constitutional rights and guarantees as every other American citizen. P&A subscribes to a “self-actualization” view which stresses that every person be given the greatest possible opportunity to shape his or her personal destiny. P&A subscribes to belief in the least restrictive conditions necessary to achieve the purposes of treatment, leaving the person as much personal freedom as possible.

In line with the above philosophies, P&A will act for the exclusive benefit of the person with a disability and will advance the interests of that person, and not those of the parent, guardian, or other third-party representative. P&A, thereby, accepts a bond of loyalty and trust with the person and assumes an obligation of representing, as if they were its own, the interests of another citizen.

P&A will provide services in a manner that offers information to the person with the disability about available options; allows the person with the disability to determine which option is preferred; and, then promotes that preferred option within the scope of, and compatible with, the person’s legal rights.

P&A makes the assumption that the person with the disability, when properly advised and assisted, is capable of making decisions. Furthermore, when a decision or meaningful choice cannot be or is not expressed by a client, or when consent is not available from or provided by a client or legally authorized substitute, the role of P&A is to act with care to safeguard and advance the interests and rights of the person with the disability.

P&A believes that people with disabilities should be empowered to advocate on their own behalf to the extent possible. Services provided by P&A shall promote consumer control in decision making and focus on the empowerment of people with disabilities in order to foster independence, productivity, and integration into the community.