Branding Style Guide
VISUAL AND CONTENT
2006-2007
Branding Style Guide 2006-2007
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The ability to build a strong Nichols College brand is essential to successful recruiting, fund raising, and marketing.
CONTENTS PA R T 1 : V I S U A L Nichols Logo Nichols Wordmark Tagline 1 2-3 3 3
Our logo and athletic marks, along with certain other graphic elements, serve as external, visual representations of our organization. Consistent use of these strong images creates a “visual identity,” building recognition for Nichols and contributing to brand development from which the public may gain a sense of our standards of quality in providing a practical business education. Nichols brand extends beyond our logo, seal, athletic marks and graphics; it is more importantly about the special relationships we have with our clients and how these relationships are realized. To help differentiate Nichols from our competitors’ offerings, Nichols College graphic identity was newly developed after careful research completed by the Marketing Committee in 2004. This included a new Nichols College logo,
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Stationery, Business Cards 4 Typography Colors Marketing Collateral/ Advertising Photography College Seal Athletic Department Guidelines 5 6 7 7 7
stationery and signage, and palette of colors for all marketing collateral, as well as athletic marks. The College’s updated graphic identity has the full support of the Office of the President, and consistent, college-wide application is essential to effectively communicate Nichols distinctive brand. All departments, offices, and programs of the College that communicate with external audiences are expected to consistently and correctly use our visual identity in the approved format. As an overseeing measure, the College requires that all major marketing collateral be approved by the Marketing Committee chaired by Vice President for Enrollment and Marketing Thomas Cafaro. This includes marketing brochures, stationery, catalogs, signs, banners, newspapers and advertisements. The Marketing Committee will evaluate collateral for accuracy, clarity, correct use of English, quality of design, consistency with graphic and content standards, and compliance with state and federal laws. Content guidelines appear in Part II of this document, beginning on page 9.
PA R T I I : C O N T E N T Nichols College Abbreviations Apostrophes Commas Diction and Composition Facts and Figures Hyphen and Dashes Idiosyncrasies Numbers Punctuation Quotation Marks Special Symbols Stereotypes Titles Web Content Alphabetical Listing References
9 9 9 10 10 11 11 11-12 12 13 13 13 14 14 14 15 16-28 29
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The Nichols Logo
Nichols logo is a modern symbol that highlights our academic mission, reflects our pride, and establishes us as a unique, recognizable institution. Strategy for projecting this image combines six essential design elements, including the College’s logo, seal, athletic marks, typographic style, palette of color, and tagline. The logotype consists of a white “NC” in a green box above the black text of “NICHOLS COLLEGE”. The typographic style is Arial. This traditional typeface, as well as the placement of the founding date of “1815” to the right, top clearly conveys Nichols College’s strong and proud history in higher learning. The official logo is available in several formats under OUTLOOK, “Branding” folder, including: • EPS (Encapsulated Post Script) for use printed pieces that require high resolution files, and a • JPEG (Joint Photographer’s Expert Group) for use within Word documents and on the Web site. Note that images are only accessible to faculty and staff (and not to students).
Nichols logo is the only logo that should be used to represent College academic programs.
It should appear on all official college publications, in all promotional advertising, and on all printed communications that circulate off campus. This includes newspaper ads, brochures, posters, newsletters, stationery, business cards, other publications, video, Web pages and CD-ROMs. The logo can also be applied to documents intended for use on campus by College staff. The logo must be used with great care, so that associations are always positive.
Here are some general logo guidelines:
External Communications: Do not print the color logo on paper using your office color printer, especially for external correspondence. Logos should not be inserted into Word / Excel Docs as a replacement for official letterhead. All external communication must be on the official Nichols letterhead provided to each department. No mass copying of the logo is permitted as marketing collateral. If you are printing a number of documents to be distributed on campus, please use the black and white version of the logo. When in doubt, contact the marketing committee. Business Forms: Every effort should be made to include the approved logo on business forms used by Nichols College, as each can be a valuable asset toward increasing the awareness and positive image of the College. A black and white logo is allowed as a replacement for the official two color logo because forms vary according to functional objectives, it is not possible to establish exact design specifications that apply to all requirements.
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Logo Guidelines continued
The College logo is not to be altered in any way. It is to be treated as a single graphic unit and not rearranged, compressed, stretched, or altered. To ensure legibility, the height of the logo should never be smaller than 5/8-inch. The preferred size is 1-inch. Unacceptable graphic treatments of the Nichols logo: DO NOT EXPAND
X X
DO NOT COMPRESS
TOO SMALL
Do not use logo smaller than 5/8” high
X
Secondary “NC” Mark
The secondary “NC” mark may be used as an accent to the primary logo. This mark may be printed solid, reversed, or screened, but it should not be graphically combined with any other logo.
The Wordmark
The wordmark comprises two components – NICHOLS and COLLEGE. Everyone must use the wordmark in its entirety and needs to used exactly as shown below. NICHOLS COLLEGE should always appear in the approved font of Arial, all caps, with “NICHOLS” in bold.
NICHOLS COLLEGE
Nichols online programs should be indicated under the heading:
NICHOLS ONLINE
Tagline
Your Success Is Our Business
Each word in the Nichols College tagline was carefully chosen to communicate that the College’s objective is to help each student thrive well beyond his/her college years. Use of the tagline can be decided on a case-by-case basis, but it should always be in Arial font, italicized, initial cap on all words, and preferably in size 10 as shown here:
Your Success Is Our Business
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Stationery/Business Cards
Stationery is one of the most powerful means of communicating the College’s image. As such, typography and printing must be of high quality.
All departments must use the approved Nichols letterhead, envelope, and business card format.
If your department has its own letterhead, the department name must appear in the upper right hand corner, left of the address line on the far right.
Information contained on business cards will be limited to the individual’s name, certification / degree initials, title, address, phone number, fax number, email address, Web address, and the Nichols tagline.
Your Success Is Our Business
The logo and address appears as shown below on envelopes. If your department has it’s own envelope, the department name is listed directly above Center Road. The tagline always appears on the back of the envelope.
PowerPoint Presentations
For official PowerPoint presentations to external audiences, please use one of the two which are available in the OUTLOOK, “Branding” folder. Both use the approved logo with a green or white background.
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Typography
Nichols has chosen three font families – Arial, Garamond and New Times Roman – to complement our logo and wordmark. The regular, regular italic, bold and bold italic versions of all fonts are available for use.
Use discretion when selecting fonts – let the typography support the communication rather than impede it.
Fonts for Publications:
Arial
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{} ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{}
Arial Black
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{}
Garamond
Garamond is the recommended font for body text. Do not mix Garamond and Times New Roman within the same document.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{} ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{} ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{} ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{}
Times New Roman
Font for the Website:
Verdana
Use Verdana for all body text on the Nichols Website.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()[]{} ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 123456780.,:;?!@#$%^&*()
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Colors
PMS 343
Official Green of Nichols College RGB= 0/71/49; hex # 004731 CMYK=100/0/71/43
The “standard” version of the Nichols logo uses two colors: green and black printing on white. The logo (NC) should be executed in print using the spot color PMS 343 and black or in the 4-color values: Cyan = 100, Magenta = 0, Yellow = 71 and Black = 43. The text beneath the logo, NICHOLS COLLEGE, prints in Arial caps, with “NICHOLS” in always used in bold. For reproduction on the Web, the hexadecimal colors can be used: hex # 004731. In addition, accent colors from the selection at left can be chosen. These color selections should be used sparingly on heading text and shading and should not be used as a background color. The Nichols green and black can also be with text as follows: Accent Colors:
Black
RGB= 0/0/0; hex # 000000
Total distribution for accent colors should not exceed 10% of the total color used on the marketing piece.
This is an example of text overprinting a 20% screen of PMS 343. Do not use screens of background color over 20% when overprinting text.
PMS 295
RGB= 0/45/98; hex # 002D62 CMYK=100/68/8/52
This is an example of text overprinting a 20% screen of black.
PMS 202
RGB= 137/32/52; hex #892034 CMYK=10/97/61/48
This is an example of text reversing out of a 60% screen of PMS 343. Do not use screens of background color less than 60% when reversing text. This is an example of text reversing out of a 60% screen of black.
PMS 117
RGB= 206/157/0; hex # CE9D00 CMYK=2/22/100/15
Example of 60% PMS 343 text
Example of 60% Black text
PMS 616
Do not use for text RGB= 215/210/157; hex # D7D29D CMYK=5/4/42/9
Do not use a screen lower than 60% of a color when using for text.
PMS 669
RGB= 65/45/93; hex # 412D5D CMYK=90/95/10/41
PMS 424
RGB= 108/111/112; hex #6C6F70 CMYK=30/22/19/53
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PA R T I : V I S U A L Addendum: November 1, 2007– Primary and Alternate Taglines and Addition of Accent and Web Colors
Tagline
Primary:
The primary tagline will continue to be used for all Nichols College business materials including: stationery, business cards, applications, business forms, certificates, etc. The font is Arial Bold Italic. The use of the alternate tagline is confined to marketing materials only. This version– designed in a carefully selected font–is available only as a graphic file that can be imported into documents that are used to advertise and promote Nichols College. The tagline can be used in black, Nichols green or in white if reversed out of a solid color. Please contact the Communications Department if there is any question on the appropriate usage of either the primary or alternate tagline.
Your Success Is Our Business
Alternate:
Accent Colors
PMS 136
PMS 136 has been added to the list of accent colors that can be used along with the Nichols green (PMS 343) and black. The conversion formulas for the RGB, hexadecimal and process (CMYK) versions of this new color are listed at left. Accent color selections – refer to the Style Guide for the complete palette of colors – should be used sparingly.
RGB= 255/188/61; hex# FFBC3D CMYK=0/28/87/5 Do not use this color for text unless the text is reversed out of a dark background.
Colors Used on the Nichols Website
Each “pod” of our website is designated by an RGB color. The Hex numbers and their equivalents are as follows: Hex Alumni & Friends Adult Learners: Current Students / Athletics: High School: Faculty & Staff: #013A55 #51304F #A24E1F #A12831 #72502A RGB 1/58/85 81/48/79 162/78/31 161/40/48 114/80/42 CMYK 99/74/43/35 67/84/42/36 26/76/100/18 25/96/83/19 42/61/89/35 PMS 2965 518 470 1807 463
Common colors: Dark green Olive Gold #00533F #647320 #C69200 0/71/49 100/115/32 198/146/0 100/0/71/43 61/57/100/21 23/42/100/3 343 7491 1245
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Marketing Collateral/ Advertising
Advertising should be designed and written to attract attention, elicit a positive response, and educate the public in ways that will increase enrollment and support of Nichols College.
All materials produced should be consistent with the College’s reputation for excellence in business education.
Please adhere to these guidelines: Print Advertising: Ads prepared for print must contain contact information such as department name and a phone number or email address. A Web address can be used in addition to, or instead of, a phone number. Recruitment Advertising: All recruitment ads needs to have the College logo and affirmative action statement: an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution. The logo and affirmative action statement are usually placed at the bottom of ads. Visual Identity: Professional quality design and typography are often the difference between ads that succeed and those that fall short. Ads should be designed by a qualified advertising agency or our graphics designer. In addition to the College logo, there are other features that are consistently used to give Nichols College ads a distinctive look that is crisp, clean and contemporary. Brochures, Posters and Related Marketing Publications: The Marketing Committee must approve all posters, brochures and other printed pieces that circulate off campus to ensure that they present accurate information, are professionally written and designed, are consistent with other College publications, and meet legal requirements. Publications designed and printed off campus also must adhere to College standards.
Photography
The Marketing Committee will provide high quality images of main campus and stock photography available for use by all departments on the X drive: “Marketing Photos”. If using a photograph, it must be of good print, usually best to use photographs that are strikingly simple, clean and uncluttered. A signed model release form must be obtained from students before their recognizable image or testimonial statement can be used to market the college. The College’s release forms are available from the Marketing Committee or online under OUTLOOK Public Folders “Branding.”
College Seal
The Nichols College seal lends an air of tradition and quality. It is to be used for formal and academic purposes only and should be used in one color: green, white or black, as follows: • Diplomas • Certificates • Transcripts • More formal, official school documents • The graduation program
The seal should not be used on general marketing materials.
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Athletic Department Guidelines
Athletic marks are restricted for use by the Department of Athletics and may not be used to represent any other academic or administrative program at Nichols College.
The Nichols College athletic identity is one of our most visible identifications. Because of extensive team travel, athletics is highly visible, on and off campus, and presents a powerful opportunity for conveying Nichols brand image. It is also an important aspect of admissions recruiting. Athletic communications will use stationery with the primary logo — Thunder, the Bison, with the capped Arial Black letters “NICHOLS.” In addition, the secondary mark or NC variations may be used as required as long as the “family” of marks is not altered.
Primary Athletic Mark
The primary athletic logo, left, is displayed in the NIchols green and black. This logo may be used in all green, all black, or reversed out of a solid color. The Nichols Bison may also be used on its own.
NICHOLS
NICHOLS
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
NICHOLS
Secondary “NC” Mark
The secondary “NC” mark is great as an accent on hats, helmets and other materials where the primary logo is not suitable. When writing the word “NICHOLS COLLEGE” on any clothing or equipment, ARIAL ALL CAPS should be used.
If a uniform uses “NICHOLS” only, it should be in “Arial Black” in all caps:
NICHOLS
In total, all aspects of a uniform must represent the “family” of marks approved by the Marketing Committee.
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PA R T I I : C O N T E N T The content portion of this Branding Style Guide applies for all promotional materials, including print and online.
As we are going through a complete redesign of our website, it is imperative that content development be consistent across departments, campuswide.
NICHOLS COLLEGE
The first reference to the College in text or body copy will always be our full name, “Nichols College.” Use “Nichols” or “the College” (but never “NC”) for second references, internal publications, or informal usage. We never use the possessive form:“Nichols’s,” but rather use “Nichols” without the apostrophe: “Two new courses have been added to Nichols Sport Management program.” Display and image materials developed in conjunction with designers and marketing consultants and approved for official use (e.g., admission brochures, catalog covers, the College’s homepage, etc.) may be exempted from this standard, but text copy in those materials should follow the rule.
ABBREVIATIONS
Except in particular cases (the alumni class notes section of Nichols College Magazine), the postal ZIP code abbreviations for states should not be used when abbreviating a state name in text copy. Use the abbreviations accepted by the Associated Press (Mass., Wis., S.D., etc.), but note that eight state names are not abbreviated—Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and Utah. The District of Columbia is treated like a state: “Washington, D.C., is the nation’s capital.” The first mention of any organization, firm, agency, or group should be spelled out. If the organization’s name is not well known, indicate the abbreviation or acronym in parentheses immediately following the first reference and refer to the organization by its abbreviation thereafter. Acronyms should not be used if the organization is only referred to once. Acronyms are appropriate if well known; they do not contain periods (except for U.S., U.N., and U.S.S.R.). Avoid coining acronyms for organizations; instead, merely shorten the name after the first reference: “The Nichols College Marketing Committee,” to use a hypothetical example, might be subsequently referred to as “the marketing committee.” Abbreviate the following in text copy (display uses may deviate): • “St.” in city and town names, as in “St. Peter,” “St. Cloud,” etc. This is an exception to the U.S. Postal Service Directory of Post Offices listings to reflect the official signage and identification of the communities and to conform to AP usage. • Units of measure when preceded by numerals. • “a.m.” and “p.m.” (not “pm” or “PM”; “ P.M.” is permissible if the font you are using includes small caps. And, while we’re on the subject of time, avoid “o’clock”). • “A.D.,” “ B.C.,” “ B.C.E. “ ( A.D. should precede the date, the latter two should follow it; use small caps where possible: A.D. 1066, 3000 B.C.E. ). Do not abbreviate: • Days of the week or months. • The first word in a sentence.
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APOSTROPHES
Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding’s: “Steve’s pencil,” “Marx’s theories.” One exception to this rule is singular proper nouns ending in “s,” for which only an apostrophe is used: “Dickens’ novels.” However, we do not use the possessive singular on Nichols: “Nichols athletic programs are experiencing phenomenal growth.” Plural possessives are formed by adding an apostrophe after the “s,” unless the word has a special plural construction that does not end in “s”: “students’ rights”; but, “women’s studies.” Plurals of words should NOT contain apostrophes: Keep up with the “Joneses,” not the “Jones’s”; and, “thousands of items,” not “thousand’s.” (One exception is plurals of single letters, which may require an apostrophe to avoid misinterpretation: “She earned all A’s.”) “It’s” always means “it is”; the pronoun possessive is “its”—with NO apostrophe: “The College celebrates its Hill heritage.” Alumni are identified in college publications such as the Nichols College Magazine by listing the last two digits of their graduation years (with apostrophe) following their names: e.g., “Aliya Ewing ’06.” For decades, use ‘60s, 1980s, not ‘60’s unless it’s a modifier: “‘60’s music.”
COMMAS
Follow Strunk and White’s second rule for serial commas: “In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a comma after each term except the last. Thus write, ‘red, white, and blue.’” The final comma is frequently omitted from the names of business firms; follow the usage of the individual firm: “Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc.” Commas should also set apart city, state: “Mary lives in Boston, Mass., in a brownstone near the Museum of Fine Arts.” When a specific date is used with month and year, set the year off with commas; when a month and year appear alone, no comma is necessary: “June 6, 1944, was D-Day”; but, “D-Day preparations came to fruition in June 1944.” A comma before the Jr. or Sr. in a proper name is not necessary: “Martin Luther King Jr.”
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DICTION AND COMPOSITION
Emphasize the active voice. Try to write direct sentences with active verbs: “This sentence needs an active verb,” rather than “This sentence is in need of an active verb.” The passive voice (“An active verb is needed in this sentence.”) does have a place in softening a statement but will be more effective if not overused. Similarly, avoid “nounspeak” (i.e., frequent use of nouns as verbs, as in “he authored the book”), which also tends to take the action out of a sentence. Avoid cliches like the plague. Likewise, avoid vogue words: Words like “groovy,” “tubular,” and “grungy” are quickly dated. Avoid repetitive redundancies and meaningless modifiers: A wide variety is, after all, a variety. Try to keep academic jargon to a minimum when writing for a general audience. Be careful about using the superlative—it’s a lot to live up to. Avoid high levels of abstraction: Don’t diagram theorems, draw pictures.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Generally, the information contained in the current year’s academic bulletin is considered official, but publication deadlines and other circumstances may affect some parts (e.g., faculty or administrative lists, course offerings, some of the statistics in the opening section), so you should double-check information that may change from year to year with the Peter Engh, associate dean for records, registration and research. Compound adjectives are hyphenated, but don’t hyphenate “-ly” words (adverbs): “fulltime job” and “well-known speaker”; but, “easily remembered rule.”
HYPHENS AND DASHES
Use a hyphen if a prefix ends in a vowel and the word that follows begins with the same vowel, or if the word that follows is capitalized: “re-election,” “non-Western. However, note exceptions that have evolved through frequent usage: “ cooperate,” “coordinate.” For some words, sense is the governing factor: “resign” (quit) vs. “re-sign” (sign again). Hyphenate “ex-” when it means “former” (“ex-convict”) but not when it means “out of” (“exhale”). When anything is defined by a century, decade, or year (i.e., when such a phrase is an adjective), use a hyphen between the number and the time period: “20th-century literature,” “first-year student.” Use a hyphen for any prefixed words you can’t find in the dictionary, unless a hyphen would distort the sense of the word. Use the hyphen to avoid possible misinterpretation: A “fast sailing ship” may be interpreted as a speedy ship with sails or any ship that happens to be moving quickly— ”fast-sailing ship” makes the latter clearer.
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Use the “em” dash (— ; those who remember typewriters learned it as two hyphens with no space on either side) to indicate an abrupt insertion or change of thought in a sentence. Use an “en” dash (–) to express intervals in numbers (“1939–1945” rather than “1939-1945”). (These dashes may be found among the special symbols of most word processing programs.)
IDIOSYNCRASIES
Student references:
• We follow the NCAA in referring to participants in sports as “student-athletes” (note hyphen). • We use “first-year student” rather than “freshman.” If you are using testimonials for online or print publication, you must include the name of the person quoted: “I was shy when I came to Nichols. Nichols helped me become more confident.” (Wayne J. Archambo ’81) Computerese: • The words “email” and “online” are no longer hyphenated. And although AP still prefers “homepage” to be two words, we like it as one. • The word “Web” is capitalized when it refers to the World Wide Web (although, like the graham cracker, it’s a likely candidate to be lowercased in the future). Derivations, like “website,” “webmaster,” and “webcast,” are not capped; the word “Internet” is. • Use a hyphen in the word “dot-coms,” a generic term for businesses operating on the Internet. • CD-ROM, MIDI, RAM, and URL are printed using all caps. • In running text, URLs (and emails) may be enclosed in angle brackets to avoid confusion with other punctuation: “The College’s website is , and the director of communications email address is .” • If a website does not use a conventional “www” address, the “http://” should be included in references to the address: , but . Latin: • A retired male professor may earn “emeritus” status; a retired female professor would earn “emerita” status: “Richard Hilliard, emeritus professor of business.” Groups are “emeriti professors.” • A female graduate is an “alumna,” a male is an “alumnus.” “Alumnae” describes a group of female graduates, while “alumni” is used for both an all-male group of graduates and a mixed group, following the Latin usage.
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NUMBERS
Arabic numerals are used for numbers above nine, and also for ages (“7 years old,” “a 9-year-old child”—note two hyphens), very large numbers (i.e., a million or larger: “7.5 billion.”), monetary figures (“$5,” “$15.80,” “$150 million”), and percentages (“8 percent”—spell out “percent”). A hyphen is not necessary in a compound adjective that includes arabic numerals to represent dollars: “an $3 million stadium.” The numbers one through nine (and zero) should be spelled out, unless used as above. When any number is the first word of a sentence, it should be spelled out. However, the sentence can usually be reworked to avoid having to spell out a large or hyphenated number, a monetary figure, or a percentage. Use the same style to express related numbers above and below 10; if any of the numbers is above 10, express all of them in numerals: “The quartet has two violins, one viola, and one cello”; but, “the orchestra has 18 violins, 8 violas, and 6 cellos.” In isolated cases, spelling out a number above 10 can serve to make it seem indefinite or a casual expression: “I have a hundred things to do today,” “I can give you a thousand and one reasons why it won’t work.” Use an “en” dash between numerals rather than a hyphen to indicate intervals: “1939–1945,” rather than “1939-1945”; “8–10 p.m.,” rather than “8-10 p.m.” (It’s a special symbol in word processing programs.) Spell out fractional amounts that are less than one in text copy, using hyphens between the words: “one-half,” “three-sixteenths.” Use figures for all fractions larger than one, employing “case” fractions (i.e., single units) wherever possible. Most type fonts include only a few common fractions as single units; other fractions need to be constructed with a slash: “3½,” “2¼,” “but 1-3/16.” (Note the hyphen in the last example, to avoid any possible confusion of the integer as part of the numerator in the fraction—”1 3/16”; this is an exception to AP style.) Instead of trying to remember all of this, convert to decimals whenever practical.
PUNCTUATION
Use punctuation to clarify meaning: It helps sometimes to read a sentence aloud and punctuate the way you speak. Avoid overuse of semi-colons, exclamation points (always single “!”, never multiple “!!”), dashes, parenthetical expressions, and italic emphases. Periods and commas always go within quotes according to American English convention; other punctuation goes within only if it is part of the quoted material.
QUOTATION MARKS
Generally, titles of short stories, poems, or articles; individual chapters in books; individual songs and other short musical compositions; and radio and television shows (or single episodes of a continuing series) are set off in quotes. Titles of books, paintings and sculptures, films, magazines, plays, record albums, operas and other long musical works, newspapers, and continuing television/radio series are italicized. Check the Chicago Manual of Style for a more complete listing.
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SPECIAL SYMBOLS
The hash marks that denote inches and feet (called “primes”) are properly rendered as straight marks ( 6’ 5” ) and are generally found among the special symbols of a printer’s typeface or word processing program. Avoid using the quotation mark key for this purpose since many typographic fonts and software programs, such as Word may display the curly “smart quotes.” Avoid sexist and stereotypical language, or language that may be construed as such: • Gender references built into words: Instead of “chairman,” use “chairperson” or “chair”; in place of “waitress,” use “server.” • Generalized personal pronouns: Instead of “Everyone will do his part,” make it “...his or her part.” Better yet, try to restructure the sentence to avoid having to use a long possessive like “his or her”: “All will do their parts.” (“Everyone will do their part” is still considered grammatically incorrect, although this usage is clearly undergoing change.) Edit for inadvertent slurs or unnecessary references to race, color, nationality, locale, religion, marital or parental status, physical or mental condition, economic status, gender and gender attributes, sexual preference, or age.
STEREOTYPES
TITLES
Avoid courtesy titles (Mr., Mrs., Miss, Ms.), except as business etiquette specifies them in correspondence. We do not capitalize titles that appear after the name, only before: Vice President for Enrollment & Marketing Thomas Cafaro; Susan Tellier, vice president for administration. “Professor,” “Associate Professor,” and “Assistant Professor,” should never abbreviated. The formal title “Doctor” is almost always abbreviated; however, avoid it when its use is not critical to the subject of the text. In programs and similar publications, an academic title (e.g., Ph.D.) following the name takes precedence over a “Dr.” preceding it (never use both). Titles (and, in most cases, first names) should be dropped on second reference and thereafter. Exceptions are familiar and frequently used occupational titles such as “Coach” or “Chief.” Generally: • Titles of books, magazines, newspapers, long poems, and plays are set in italics. • Titles of articles in books or magazines, short stories, short poems, and essays are enclosed in quotes. • Titles of motion pictures and television series are italicized; titles of individual television programs and radio programs are quoted. • Titles of long musical compositions; record albums (and CDs); plays; and paintings, drawings, statues, and other works of art are italicized; titles of songs and other short musical compositions are quoted. • Unofficial titles (e.g., Mona Lisa) are simply capped.
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WEB CONTENT
Content is the most important part of a website. If the content does not provide the information needed by users, the website will provide little value no matter how easy it is to use the site. Use familiar words and avoid the use of jargon. If acronyms and abbreviations are used, ensure that they are clearly understood by typical users and defined on the page. Minimize the number of words in a sentence and sentences in a paragraph. Make the first sentence (the topic sentence) of each paragraph descriptive of the remainder of the paragraph. State clearly the temporal sequence of instructions. Write in an affirmative, active voice, and limit prose text on navigation pages. Clearly Organize Content After ensuring that content is useful, well-written and in a format that is suitable for the Web, it is important to ensure that the information is clearly organized. In some cases, the content on a site can be organized in multiple ways to accommodate multiple audiences. Organizing content includes putting critical information near the “top” of the site, grouping related elements, and ensuring that all necessary information is available without slowing the user with unneeded information. Content should be formatted to facilitate scanning and to enable quick understanding. Headings/Titles Well-designed headings help to facilitate both scanning and reading written material. Strive to use unique and descriptive headings and to use as many headings as necessary to enable users to find what they are looking for. Headings should be used in their appropriate HTML order, and it is generally a good idea not to skip heading levels. When tables are used, make sure you have a title for the table and that descriptive row and column headings are included that enable users to clearly understand the information in the table. It is occasionally important to highlight certain critical information. Linking Linking means that users will select and click on hypertext link on a starting page, which then causes a new page to load. Users continue toward their goal by finding and clicking on subsequent links. To ensure that links are effectively used, use meaningful link labels, provide consistent clickability cues, and designate when links have been clicked. Link text should be an appropriate length. Lists Capitalize the first letter of only the first word of a list item, a list box item, a check box label and radio button label. Only the first letter of the first word should be capitalized unless the item contains another word that normally would be capitalized.
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An Alphabetical Listing
This listing is a complement to the College’s evolving style guide. It was developed as a reference for Nichols-specific and other frequently encountered words and phrases, and for clarifications of and exceptions to the AP Stylebook, Webster’s New World College Dictionary, and the Chicago Manual of Style, the standard style references used for College publications. It also includes answers to some common questions about usage and punctuation.
A
• academic advising services, Office of Academic Advising Services • academic affairs, Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs & Dean • academic honesty policy • Academic Honors program; honors program(s) • academic year (e.g., 2006–07): Generally, don’t repeat century (note also no apostrophe), except when century changes (1999–2000). Other inclusive years are written in full (e.g., 1936–1942). • Academic Resource Center (ARC) • Achievement Tests • ACT (American College Test) • A.D. (goes before the year; small caps preferred if available: A.D. 1215) • Admissions Office • Advanced Placement, AP, Advanced Placement program • adviser (preferred over advisor); but, advisory • affect/effect: The former is usually a verb, meaning “to influence”; its noun use is best avoided. The latter is more frequently used as a noun, meaning “result”; as a verb it means “to cause.” • African American (noun or adjective) • Afro-American • age: Always use numerals (5 years old; the 2,000-year-old man—note two hyphens in adjective). • Ala.: abbreviation for Alabama • Alaska: Do not abbreviate. • All-American (noun or adjective; capitalized when referring to an NCAA-recognized athletic honor): She is an All-American; he is an All-American player; but, they are on the All-America team. Do not cap “all” when used generically: Jack Armstrong is an all-American boy. • “Alma Mater” (school song) • alumni association, Nichols Alumni Association (first ref.) • alumni fund • Alumni Hall • alumni office, Office of Alumni Relations • alumnus/alumna: from the Latin; an individual male graduate is referred to as an “alumnus,” a female as an “alumna”; a group of female graduates is “alumnae,” a group of males (and a mixed group, following Latin usage) is “alumni.” • a.m. ( A.M. permissible if small caps available), not am or AM in text (See also: “times of day.”) 16
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• American Indian, Indian Nations: The specific tribal heritage is preferred, if known. • anniversaries (institutional): Higher education is big on anniversary celebrations, so it’s important that we’re proper in our references to them. Most of the following terms are tremendously awkward, so alternative labels like “jubilee” may be preferred. 200 = bicentennial • annual fund: now officially known as the Nichols Fund • AP: Advanced Placement • Ariz.: abbreviation for Arizona • Ark.: abbreviation for Arkansas • Asian American (noun or adjective) • Athletic Department • athletic director • awhile/a while (the former is an adverb, the latter a noun): He sat awhile, but she sat for a while.
B
• baccalaureate, baccalaureate service • bachelor’s degree, A.B., B.A., B.S. • Bachelor of Arts, bachelor’s degree • B.C. or B.C.E. (follows the year; small caps preferred if available: 3000 B.C.E.) • bias-free language: When in doubt about presenting a bias in your writing, ask yourself these questions: 1) Would I say the same thing about a person of another sex, race, age, socioeconomic background, or creed? 2) Would I want to have this said about me? If your answer to either is “no,” write it another way. • Bible: Capitalize but do not italicize when referring to the various versions of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures or any books contained therein. • biblical • bi-racial: Use multi-racial or specify racial combination instead. • Black (capped as noun or adjective referring to race; exception to AP) • board of directors: Cap only when preceded by official title of organization (e.g., Nichols College Alumni Association Board of Directors) • board of trustees, Nichols College Board of Trustees, board member or trustee • Bookstore • Budleigh Hall • buildings and grounds, Office of Buildings and Grounds • building names: Capitalize full or shortened title—Conrad Hall, Nichols College Library—but not informal references such as “the library” or “the athletics center.” Don’t abbreviate any words in a building name. • Business Office
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C
• Calif.: abbreviation for California • campaigns: Official names of fund-raising campaigns are capped (e.g., Vendetti Field Campaign). • Campus Activities Board (CAB) • campus chaplain • campus security, Department of Public Safety • campuswide • career services, Office of Career Services • catalog: Academic Bulletin of Nichols College [year] is the official title of the publication. Do not cap or italicize “catalog” or use “catalog” or “college catalog” as an official reference. • CD-ROM (all caps) • century: ninth century, 19th century—spell out “first” through “ninth”; otherwise, use ordinals. (Exception: Faculty frequently prefer centuries spelled out in catalog course descriptions.) Hyphenate adjective forms (18th-century art). • chair: The gender-neutral “chair” and “chairperson” are preferred over “chairman.” • Chalmers Field House • Chicano (referring to Mexicano or Mexican American) • Class of . . . [insert year]; for alumni identification in the Nichols College Magazine, use last two digits of year following name: Greg Daley ’93. • coed (referring to coeducation or coeducational, but not as a term for women students) • College Board examination(s), College Boards • College Calendar: both the official online calendar of the College • college relations: now combined with development and alumni relations in Institutional Advancement • Colo.: abbreviation for Colorado • commencement, [year] Commencement Exercises (capitalized when referring to the specific event at Nichols), commencement speaker • committee names: Capitalize if official. • common application form (lowercase in text) • comprise: an active, transitive verb meaning “include” or “contain.” The whole comprises its parts (not the other way around, and not “is comprised of”); “The course work comprises three tests, two papers, and the final.” • computer programming languages: BASIC; FORTRAN; LOGO; Pascal, C++, etc. • Conn.: abbreviation for Connecticut • controller (not comptroller) • course load, course work • course names and numbers: Refer to catalog for official course names and numbers. Use Arabic numerals, and capitalize and spell out the subject in text copy when used with a numeral: Marketing 101, “Principles of Marketing” (not MKT 101). • criminal justice management (major), Criminal Justice Management program • Cross Campus Critical Issues Program (CCCI) 18
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D
• database • Datatel: administrative database • dates: Use commas to set year apart when including day (June 6, 1944, was DDay) but not with month and year only (D-Day plans came to fruition in June 1944). Do not abbreviate names of days or months in text (exception to AP standard; months of six letters or more may be abbreviated in datelines and listings). Do not use a hyphen or dash with “from” or “between” (wrong: from May 7–14, between May 27–June 4; right: from May 7 to May 14, between May 27 and June 14, or May 7–14). • Davis Café (in Davis Hall) • dean of students, Office of Student Services • Dean’s List • decades: 1930s, ‘30s (no apostrophe before the “s”) • Del.: abbreviation for Delaware • department names: The term “department” is generally used for academic areas— and usually precedes the area name—while “office” applies to administrative areas (with some exceptions). Only the official name is capitalized (i.e., Department of English vs. English department). Formal and informal names may be used interchangeably, though audience sensitivity should be exercised. • development office, Institutional Advancement Office • dining services, Sodhexo Dining Services • disabled: “Persons with disabilities” is preferred. • disk (computer; not disc, as in compact disc, although—confusing the issue—a CD-ROM is a compact disc): at any rate, “diskette” is preferred when referring to the standard 3½-inch, plastic-encased unit. • the Dive • Division III (NCAA classification of Nichols athletics teams) • Division of Graduate & Professional Studies, the division • doctorate, doctoral degree, Ph.D., Ed.D., etc. • dollars (print standards): $6 million drive (note no hyphen in adjective form when a numeral is included), $40 (not $40.00 or $40 dollars); generally, use Arabic numerals rather than spelling out dollar amounts. • dormitory: Avoid—Nichols students live in residence halls • dot-coms: when referring generically to businesses that operate on the Web
E
• Early Decision Plan • e-business • e-commerce • economics department, Department of Economics • electronic mail, email: Use lowercase for e-mail addresses (e.g., djmillhofer@nichols.edu). • email
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• emigrant/immigrant: The former is one who leaves a country, the latter one who enters a country; it’s really a matter of perspective. • ensure/insure: Use “insure” when referring to financial or contractual issues; use “ensure” in the more general sense of making certain, guaranteeing, or securing.
F
• FAQs • Faculty Senate • faculty-student ratio: Use “student-faculty ratio,” since the larger number is usually listed first (e.g., 14:1). • Family Weekend • fax, facsimile (not FAX) • financial aid, Office of Financial Aid • first-semester courses, fall-semester courses • Fla.: abbreviation for Florida • floors (in buildings): use first floor, second floor, not Floor 2, etc. • follow up (verb) • follow-up (noun or adjective) • fractions: Use figures when larger than one, employing “case” or split fractions when possible (½, ¼, and ¾ are commonly available); spell out when less than one (1½, 1-3/16, but two-thirds). • Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) • freshmen: Use “first-year students” instead. • FTE (full-time equivalent, referring to enrollment totals) • fundraiser, fundraising (noun and adjective usages)
G
• Ga.: abbreviation for Georgia • grade point average, GPA (not G.P.A. or QPA) • Guaranteed Student Loan Program (renamed Stafford Student Loan Program and now Federal Family Education Loan Program) • Guest House
H
• Hall of Fame, Nichols College Athletics Hall of Fame (first ref.) • handicapped: “Persons with disabilities” and “physically challenged” are preferred. • Hawaii: Do not abbreviate. • health services • hearing-impaired (an adjective, not a noun) • high school (no hyphen in adjective usage) • high-tech (adj) • the Hill
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• Hispanic (a term popularized by the Nixon administration, originally referring to people from Spanish-speaking countries living in the United States; see separate entries for “Chicano” and “Latino.”) • historical: takes the article “a,” not “an” • history department, Department of History • Homecoming • homepage • honorary degree, honorary doctorate • honors, graduation honors: cum laude, magna cum laude, summa cum laude (italicized) • housing, Office of Housing and Residence Life • HTML • human resources, Office of Human Resources • hyphen: Use it to avoid ambiguity or to form a single idea out of two or more words. Hyphenate compound adjectives that precede nouns (a first-quarter touchdown, a know-it-all attitude), but don’t when those same combinations stand alone or follow the nouns (He scored a touchdown in the first quarter; her attitude suggested that she knew it all). Some well-established compound modifiers have lost the hyphen (a high school play, the civil rights movement). Do not hyphenate after the word “very” or after words ending in “-ly” (adverbs). Also, note “suspensive hyphenation”: “He received a 10- to 20-year sentence.”
I
• Idaho: Do not abbreviate. • Ill.: abbreviation for Illinois • Inc.: Abbreviate and cap when used as part of a corporate name. It is usually not needed in text but, if it is used, do not set it off with commas; follow usage of corporation when listing. • Ind.: abbreviation for Indiana • independent study, independent study project(s) • information-based • Information Technology Office • institutional advancement, Office of the Vice President for Institutional Advancement • institutional research • insure (See “ensure/insure.”) • international students: preferred over “foreign” or “non-native” • the Internet, the Net • Internet addressing protocol: www.nichols.edu (If a conventional “www” address, “http://” may be dropped in text.) Do not italicize URLs. Enclosing with angle brackets in text is suggested to avoid confusion with other punctuation. • intranet • Iowa: Do not abbreviate. • IT: informal acronym for Office of Information Technology • italics for foreign terms: Italicize words that haven’t been incorporated into everyday use. Second and later appearances in an article need not be italicized. (Words into Type has a good list of foreign words.)
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J
• JavaScript • Jr.: A comma is not necessary (Henry Benson Jr.). • junior (referring to a third-year student)
K
• Kan.: abbreviation for Kansas • Kuppenheimer Hall • Ky.: abbreviation for Kentucky
L
• La.: abbreviation for Louisiana • LAN: local area network (computer network; see also: WAN) • laptop • Latin American, Latino • Latina/Latino (referring to Spanish-speaking heritages, cultures, or peoples, generally other than Spanish and Mexican) • Library • local area network: LAN (computer network) • log on / log in (v) • log-on / log-in (n or adj) • Lombard Dining Hall
M
• magazine and newspaper titles: Italicize the title as it appears on the publication (ignoring any “the” but identifying the city if not part of the newspaper title: the New York Times, Time magazine). • Maine: Do not abbreviate. • majors: Use lowercase for subjects except in cases with a proper noun, such as English: accounting, criminal justice management, economics, English, business communications • Mass.: abbreviation for Massachusetts • Master’s in Business Administration • master’s degree, M.B.A. • Md.: abbreviation for Maryland • Mich.: abbreviation for Michigan • mid: Combine with common words, hyphenate with capped words (“midsummer,” but “mid-July”). • midnight (not 12 a.m. or 12 midnight) • Minn.: abbreviation for Minnesota
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• minority: Use specific reference when possible and appropriate (Asian American, Mexican American) or, alternately, “person of color.” • minors only: Use same rules as for majors • Mission Statement (capitalized when referring to the official document of the College) • Miss.: abbreviation for Mississippi • Mo.: abbreviation for Missouri • Mont.: abbreviation for Montana • more than/over: Use “over” for spatial relationships. • multicultural program
N
• Native American (referring to an American Indian; when referring generally to any native-born American, lowercase “native”) • N.C.: abbreviation for North Carolina • N.C.A.A.: Divisions are denoted by Roman numerals—I-A, I-AA, II, and III (Nichols teams are in Division III). • N.D.: abbreviation for North Dakota • Neb.: abbreviation for Nebraska • the Net (short for the Internet; note that both terms are capitalized) • Nev.: abbreviation for Nevada • N.H.: abbreviation for New Hampshire • Nichols College, the College • Nichols Fund • N.J.: abbreviation for New Jersey • N.M.: abbreviation for New Mexico • nonsexist language: Masculine nouns and pronouns are no longer considered generic; he, his, chairman, forefathers, sportsmen, mankind, etc. should not be assumed to include women. Even assuming inclusion, the masculine construction may prove awkward: “Man, like other mammals, breast feeds his young.” There is almost always a better word. Alternately, the sentence may usually be rewritten, either 1) to eliminate the pronoun (e.g., instead of “Each doctor treats his patients with care,” consider “Each doctor treats patients with care”) or 2) in the plural (if this does not alter the specific meaning of the sentence; e.g., try “Doctors treat their patients with care”). Use “his or her” and “he or she” when appropriate, but avoid overusing them. Use generic nouns: photographer, not cameraman; supervisor, not foreman; representatives, not congressmen; nurse, not male nurse. (These suggestions barely scratch the surface. There are several recent publications on nonsexist writing, the most comprehensive of which may be The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing, by Casey Miller and Kate Swift.) • noon (not 12 p.m. or 12 noon) • not only/but also: If you use the former, also use both words of the latter; a comma between phrases is not necessary.
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• numbers: Use a comma in numbers of four or more digits except in dates, addresses, and page numbers. In casual expressions and when rounding large numbers, spell out (thanks a million, nearly one thousand people). Use cardinal numbers in dates (August 7, not August 7th). (See also: “fractions.”) • N.Y.: abbreviation for New York
O
• Observatory • occupational descriptions: informal, never capped—astronaut John Glenn, football coach Billy Carven. (However, cf. “Coach” as a formal and familiar title denoting scope of authority, which is capped in referring to a head coach: Coach Carven. The word “Chief” is used similarly.) • offices: Like departments, they are capped only if formal names are given (e.g., Office of Admission, but admission office). • offline • Ohio: do not abbreviate • Okla.: abbreviation for Oklahoma • Olsen Hall • ongoing • online (adjective or adverb, no hyphen): online catalog, apply online • on-screen (adv or adj) • opening convocation • Ore.: abbreviation for Oregon • orient (verb): not “orientate” • Orient (noun, referring to the Far East) • Oriental: Asian is preferred when referring to nations or nationalities; Oriental remains appropriate in reference to rugs. • orientation, Orientation (capped when referring to the program of activities for incoming Nichols students preceding the start of fall semester)
P
• Pa.: abbreviation for Pennsylvania • Pell Grant, Federal Pell Grant Program, Pell award • Ph.D., Ph.D.s • Photoshop • physical plant, Physical Plant Department (exception to the “office” rule) • p.m. (See: “a.m.”) • point-and-click • political science, Department of Political Science • pop-up window • possessive: For singular proper names not ending in “s,” form the possessive by adding ‘s; for names ending in “s” and for plural names, use only an apostrophe: Aarsvold’s computer, but Jones’ typewriter; the Joneses’ house. A note about possessives: “Proper” style reserves possessives for ownership by a person. We prefer “Nichols traditions,” without an apostrophe. 24
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• Post Office, campus post office • postseason • postsecondary • postgame • premier/premiere: “Premier” is an adjective (meaning chief or foremost or, alternately, first) with a specific noun use as the title of a government leader. “Premiere” is a verb or noun referring to a first performance. • preseason • President’s Council • President’s House • printout (n) • print out (v) • Professional Development Seminars (PDS) • professorships, named: Capitalize complete titles, even when printed alone or after the professor’s name • public safety, Office of Public Safety • pull-down (n or adj) • pull down (v)
Q
• quotation marks: Use double marks to 1) enclose the exact words of a speaker; 2) set off a character or word when it represents itself rather than its usual meaning (e.g., The word “it’s” is frequently misused; Hester Prynne wore the letter “A” on her dress); or 3) indicate titles of short stories, essays, and other short works. Single marks are used for quotes within quotes (e.g., “Hester Prynne wore the letter ‘A’ on her dress”).
R
• real-time (adj) • real time (n) • re-create • redesign • registrar, Office of the Registrar • Remillard Hall • Renaissance: capped as a specific period in European history; otherwise, lowercased • repurpose • residence halls (preferred over “dormitories”) • residential life, Office of Residential Life (not housing office) • résumé (Note accent marks.) • R.I.: abbreviation for Rhode Island • Robert C. Fischer Institute, the institute • rooms: Capitalize names when they are official room names (Ingraham) but not when they are simply locations or informal names (library conference room). When a room number is listed with a building name, capitalize “Room” (e.g., Davis Hall, Room 103).
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S
• SAT score • S.C.: abbreviation for South Carolina • scalability • scalable • Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) • S.D.: abbreviation for South Dakota • second-semester courses, Spring-semester courses • senior (referring to a fourth-year student) • senior class gift • service-learning (hyphenated in all uses) • Shamie Hall • site map • Social Security • sophomore • sport management (major), Sport Management program • Sports Information Office • sports medicine • Spring Break (both officially and informally!) • Sr.: A comma is not necessary (Henry Benson Sr.). • State names: spell out or use AP-standard abbreviations in sentences; use twoletter postal abbreviation in listings and addresses only (a ZIP code properly includes a two-letter state code AND five or nine numbers). Set state off with commas when used with a town or city in text. • street, avenue, road, etc.: Abbreviations are permissible; however, the unabbreviated form is appropriate in formal “display” usage such as invitations. • Student Activities Office • student-athlete (noun and adjective, to be consistent with NCAA style) • student employment; internship (Avoid “work-study.”) • Student Government Association (SGA) • student services, Office of Student Services • student teacher (noun use), student-teaching (adjective) • subtopic
T
• telephone numbers, use of a hyphen after area code is preferred: “508-213-1560,” instead of “(508) 213-1560.” • Tenn.: abbreviation for Tennessee • Texas: Do not abbreviate. • that/which: “That” is a restrictive pronoun; it serves to identify the noun preceding it (e.g., “The lawn mower that is in the garage doesn’t work”—identifying one mower among implied others). “Which” is used with nonrestrictive clauses, which add information rather than define or limit what has gone before and are almost always set off with commas (e.g., “The lawn mower, which is in the garage, doesn’t work”—where identification of a particular mower is not an issue). 26
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• Use “theater” in generic use, and follow the particular usage of other schools, troupes, or organizations. • Third World (noun and adjective): “Developing nations” is preferred. • TIAA-CREF retirement plan • time frame • timeline • times of day: Use p.m. and a.m. (lowercase with periods—small caps are permissible if available); using :00 is not necessary. Use “en” dashes to indicate inclusive times when used without words like “from” or “between.” “Noon” and “midnight” are lowercased and stand alone (i.e., not 12 noon): 8–10 a.m., 8:30 a.m.–noon; but, from 8 to 10 a.m., between 8:30 a.m. and noon. • Title [followed by Roman num.]: sections of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (e.g., Title IX) • titles (people): Capitalize official titles before names: Dean of Student Services Brian McCoy (“Dean” is also considered an official title), Assistant Professor Mark Naigles. Lowercase (and note subtle differences in) occupational descriptions before names (English professor Wayne-Daniel Berard, department chair WayneDaniel Berard). Use lowercase for titles after names (Brian McCoy, dean of student services) in text copy, although titles following names are often capitalized in display use (e.g., in mastheads, programs, etc.). • toward (not towards) • trustee(s), Nichols College Board of Trustees, board of trustees
U
• United States (not abbreviated when a noun: “. . . came to the United States in 1956”), U.S. (adjective: “. . . exchanged her U.S. currency”) • upperclassmen: Replace with gender-neutral term such as “returning students” when practical. Consider, also, using “sophomores, juniors, and seniors,” when this isn’t too wordy. Do not use “upper class students,” as it can be misconstrued as a reference to social class. (The adjective “upperclass” has been suggested, but be aware that it is not yet officially accepted by the folks at Webster’s, although “upperclassmen” is!) • URL (Uniform Resource Locator): www.nichols.edu (“http://” may be dropped when using in a sentence). Do not italicize URLs. They may be placed in angle brackets in running text to avoid confusion with other punctuation (e.g., “Our website is .”). Remember that they are case sensitive. • usable • user-center (adj) • username (computer user ID) • user testing • Utah: Do not abbreviate.
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V
• Va.: abbreviation for Virginia • Vendetti Field • vice president • Vt.: abbreviation for Vermont
W
• WAN: wide area network (computer network) • Wash.: abbreviation for Washington; state of Washington or Washington state, to distinguish from the city (not Washington State—that’s the name of a university) • Washington, D.C. (Set D.C. off with commas when using with Washington in a sentence.) • the Web (short for World Wide Web); but, website, webcast, webcam, webmaster • white (referring to race): “Black” is capitalized because it formally denotes a race; “white,” on the other hand, is more often used generically, i.e., to mean “not Black,” “not Hispanic,” etc. • Wis.: abbreviation for Wisconsin • work flow • work-study: But, “student employment” is preferred. • W.Va.: abbreviation for West Virginia • Wyo.: abbreviation for Wyoming
X Y
• Years: ’60s, ’90s
Z
• ZIP code (not zip code, Zip Code, or Zip code): A ZIP code properly includes two capital letters designating the state and five or nine digits—when abbreviating a state in running text, use accepted AP abbreviations.
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REFERENCES
First reference for spelling, style, usage, and foreign geographic names: The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law, 39th edition, Norm Goldstein, editor. Cambridge, Mass.: Perseus Publishing, 2004. First reference for items not in the AP Stylebook: Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition. New York: Macmillan USA, a Pearson Education Macmillan Company, 1999. Second reference for spelling, style, and usage: Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged. Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam Co., 1961. Second reference for foreign geographic names: National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2004 (many name changes and revised spellings). First reference for titling and general reference for style issues not covered by above references: The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. First reference for place names in the United States: National 5-Digit ZIP Code and Post Office Directory. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Postal Service, updated yearly. First reference for official names and spellings of corporations: Standard & Poor’s Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., updated regularly. First reference for musical compositions and composers: The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (20 vol.), Stanley Sadie, editor. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. Other references: The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage, Theodore M. Bernstein. New York: Atheneum, 1965. The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition, William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White. Needham Heights, Mass.: Allyn & Bacon, A Pearson Education Company, 2000. Guidelines for Inclusive Use of the English Language. Chicago: ELCA Commission for Communication, 1989 The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing, Casey Miller and Kate Swift. New York: Lippincott, 1988. Modern American Usage: A Guide, Wilson Follett (edited and completed by Jacques Barzun). New York: Hill and Wang, Division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1965. Talking about People: A Guide to Fair and Accurate Language, Rosalie Maggio. Phoenix, Ariz.: Oryx Press, 1997.
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