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Index
addresses, how to list. advisor--Use the -or spelling in all WMU references (academic advisor, faculty advisor, residence advisor) and for all general references (There are many career opportunities for financial advisors). When referencing the job titles of people outside the University, use their preferred spelling. affect/effect--Affect, as a verb, means to influence. (His illness will affect his attendance.) Effect, as a verb, means to cause. (We will effect a major reorganization of the office.) Alumni Association--Capitalized only when referring to the WMU Alumni Association. Do not capitalize association when it appears alone (see capitalization). ampersand--Do not use ampersands (&) in text (tuition and fees), titles (provost and vice president for academic affairs) or names (College of Health and Human Services), except when it is part of a company's legal name (Procter & Gamble). at--Except for e-mail addresses, never use the symbol @ in text. athletic department--There is no athletic department at WMU. As with all units of the University, the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics should be referred to by its full name on first reference and may be referred to as "intercollegiate athletics" or "athletics" or "the division" on subsequent references. biology department--There is no biology department at WMU. As with all units of the University, the Department of Biological Sciences should be referred to by its full name on first reference and may be referred to as "biological sciences" or "the department" on subsequent references. Use biology to refer to the discipline and major, not the department. Board of Trustees--Capitalized only when referring to the WMU Board of Trustees. Do not capitalize the board or trustees when they appear alone (see capitalization). Bronco NetID (exactly as shown)--A userid for WMU computer services. brown and gold--The school colors are brown and gold (not capitalized). Bronco/Broncos--Capitalized when referring to the mascot or athletic teams of WMU (see capitalization). Campus community--The campus community includes all students, faculty and staff and is a part of the much larger University community, which also includes alumni, emeriti and friends of WMU.
catalog (not catalogue), cataloged, cataloging, cataloger. cities, how to list. chair (not chairman, not chairwoman, not chairperson)--Except for persons outside WMU, whose titles should not be changed to conform to WMU style. If a visiting speaker's formal title is "chairman and chief executive officer," that is the way it should be published. ciphers (see numerals) Class of 19__--Capitalize when referring to the WMU graduating class. (She is a member of the Class of 1998.) Do not capitalize class when it appears alone. coed and coeducation (not hyphenated)--Coed may be used, even in formal writing, in references such as "coed residence halls," and "coed softball teams." Do not refer to women as coeds. commencement (not capitalized). CommUniverCity--Any of several WMU-sponsored community events or activities, notably "CommUniverCity Night Football," typically the first home football game of the season. courtesy titles--Do not use courtesy titles (Ms., Miss, Mrs., Mr.) in general writing. They may be used in directory listings, personal correspondence, direct quotations and other special situations. Use of Ms., Miss or Mrs. is a matter of personal preference, not style or policy. current and currently (presently and at present) are overused and are frequently unnecessary. Instead of, "We currently have 200 students in the program," write, "We have 200 students in the program." dates, days, months, and years. decades--Use 1960s, 1990s or use '60s, '90s (no apostrophe before the s). dollar amounts (see numerals). EEO/AA statements (see Nondescrimination statements). e-mail--Hyphenated, not capitalized. The same style applies to e-book, e-commerce, e-learning, e-portfolio and similar terms. See e-references. e-mail addresses--The preferred format for e-mail addresses is all lowercase. However, if the prefix contains a person's name, cap first letters may be used for the name, Susan.Carrick@wmich.edu. See e-references. each--May be abbreviated (ea.) in tables, but never in text. Avoid unnecessary use. Instead of "Tickets are $12 each," write "Tickets are $12." ensure/insure--Ensure means to guarantee. (We will ensure that all funds are used wisely.) Insure refers to insurance. entitled/titled--Books, plays, movies, songs and lectures have titles and are titled. (William Shakespeare wrote a play titled, "Othello.") Entitled refers to guarantees, rights and entitlements. (All students are entitled to equal opportunity. Each coupon entitles you to one free admission.) Equal Employment Opportunity (see Nondescrimination statements). everyone/every one--Use two words when referring to each individual item. Use one word when used as a pronoun meaning all persons. farther/further--Farther refers to physical distance. (She ran farther than anyone else.) Further refers to an extension of time or degree. (He wants to further his studies.) federal (not capitalized)--When used as an adjective (federal regulations, federal assistance) to distinguish something from state, city, county, and other government entities, federal is always lowercase. Capitalize only when part of a proper name (Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Trade Commission). freshman, sophomore, junior, senior (not capitalized)--Constructions such as "first-year students" and "upper-level students" are preferred. freshman class (not freshmen class). fund raising/fund-raising--Fund raising is two words. It is hyphenated only when used as a compound modifier. (The fund-raising brochure...) It is not hyphenated when used as a noun. (Fund raising will begin in October.) geology department--There is no geology department at WMU. As with all units of the University, the Department of Geosciences should be referred to by its full name on first reference and may be referred to as "geosciences" or "the department" on subsequent references. Use geology to refer to the discipline and major, not the department. GoWMU (exactly as shown)--WMU's secure intranet portal. Do not refer to GoWMU as "the portal" or "GoWMU portal." Use GoWMU. home page--Internet term referring to the main page in a Web site. Two words, no hyphen, not capitalized. See e-references. homecoming--Not capitalized except when preceded by the name of the University (WMU Homecoming) or used as part of the name of a specific homecoming (Homecoming 2003). in order is unnecessary in constructions such as, "In order to save more money, we reduced our spending." Simply write, "To save more money, we reduced our spending." Internet--proper noun, always capitalized. See e-references. intranet--A communication network within an organization or group. Not capitalized. Note that there are hundreds of intranets at WMU, but there is only one worldwide Internet. See e-references. last and next--Avoid using last or next. million, billion, trillion (see numerals) more than/over--More than is used with numbers. (More than 30 graduates attended.) Over refers to spatial relationships. (The flag flew over the building.) Ms., Miss, Mrs. (see courtesy titles) multi--Most words beginning with multi (multicultural, multimedia, multinational, multitasking) are not hyphenated. That includes names of campus facilities, such as the Multicultural Center, Multiform Theatre and Dalton Center Multimedia Room. names--In general writing, do not use the full, formal names of buildings or other entities that are named for people. Use Miller Auditorium, not James W. Miller Auditorium. Use Waldo Library, Sangren Hall, Bernhard Center, Haenicke Institute, Brown Auditorium, Lee Honors College, Meader Rare Book Room. Nondescrimination statements (official board-approved wording)
online--one word, no hyphen, not capitalized. See e-references. percent--Percent is one word. Do not use the symbol (%) in text. (There was a 12 percent increase.) Always use numerals for percentages, even for single numerals (5 percent). phone and fax numbers--The format for phone and fax numbers is (269) 387-8400. Use parentheses around the area code. Use a hyphen between the exchange and number. Do not use periods. The format for toll-free numbers is the same. Use: (800) 555-1212. Do not use 1-800-555-1212. presently and at present (current and currently) are overused and are frequently unnecessary. Instead of, "We presently have 200 students in the program," write, "We have 200 students in the program." salutations in form letters. seal--Referring to the official seal of the University (or any organization's seal or logo), use lowercase even in constructions such as "the University seal" or "WMU seal." seasons--Lowercase summer, fall, winter, spring, including constructions such as "fall semester." sexism, avoiding in writing. sports
states (U.S.), how to list. telephone, see phone the--Not capitalized unless it begins a sentence. This is true even for proper names that always include "the." In a directory listing or similar use, in which only the name appears, capitalize "The" if it begins the name (The Oaklands). However, do not capitalize "the" when used internally in a sentence. (Our meeting was held at the Oaklands.) theatre--Use the -re spelling for all WMU references (Shaw Theatre, Department of Theatre, theatre major) and for all general references (There are six movie theatres in Kalamazoo.). When referencing the names of other theatre organizations, use their preferred spelling. time, hours, a.m., p.m., how to list. typography, basic rules unique--Unique is an absolute, meaning "one of a kind." Something is either unique, or it is not. It can be less distinctive, more unusual or truly extraordinary, but it cannot be less unique, more unique, somewhat unique or really unique. University--Capitalize only when it refers exclusively to Western Michigan University. See capitalization and abbreviations. University community--The campus community includes all students, faculty and staff and is a part of the much larger University community, which also includes alumni, emeriti and friends of WMU. URL--Universal Resource Locator, a Web address. The term "Web address" is preferred in University writing. URL is acceptable. See e-references. Web--When referring to the World Wide Web, Web is a proper noun and is capitalized. See e-references. Web addresses--Also known as URLs (See URL). Web addresses are case sensitive. The prefix http:// should not be included when listing a Web address in a correspondence, publication, or other printed material. See e-references. Web page--Two words, no hyphen. Web is always capitalized. See e-references. Web site--Two words, no hyphen. Web is always capitalized. See e-references. webcam--One word, not capitalized. See e-references. Western--Capitalize when it refers to Western Michigan University. An acceptable abbreviation after the full name of the University has been introduced. The preferred abbreviation is WMU. See abbreviations. Western Michigan--Capitalize when it refers to Western Michigan University. An acceptable abbreviation after the full name of the University has been introduced. When using "Western Michigan," be certain that it refers clearly to either the University or the region. The preferred abbreviation is WMU. See abbreviations. WMU--The preferred abbreviation after the full name of the University has been introduced. Do not use periods. See abbreviations. |
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Office of University Relations Revised: May 23, 2007 |