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Hamilton College Editorial Style Guideacademic degrees Avoid abbreviations when possible: Susan Smith earned her master's degree in English at New York University. John Jones has a doctorate in psychology. (Do not use "doctorate degree"). Use abbreviations — B.A., M.A., LL.D., J.D. and Ph.D. — only when the need to identify many individuals by degree on first reference would make the preferred form cumbersome. When used after a name, set off by commas: John Smith, Ph.D., spoke at the conference. Reserve Dr. for medical doctors and dentists, not people with doctorates; use before the name: Dr. Bob Jones performed the surgery. When mentioning that someone has a doctor of medicine or doctor of dental surgery degree, use M.D. degree and D.D.S. degree. Use an apostrophe in bachelor's degree, master's, etc. However, there is no apostrophe in bachelor of arts or master of science. Also: an associate degree (no possessive). When referring to a member of the Hamilton faculty, do not use Ph.D. or Dr.; instead use Professor of Classics Barbara Gold or Barbara Gold, professor of classics. See "titles" and "faculty chairs." academic departments See "departments and offices." academic disciplines See "concentrations." academic support services Capitalize the full name of Hamilton academic support services and programs such as Diversity and Social Justice Project; Burke Library; Information Technology Services; Language Center; Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center; Maurice Horowitch Career Center; Nesbitt-Johnston Writing Center; Oral Communication Center; Quantitative Literacy Center; Peer Tutoring Program. Use the complete name on first reference whenever possible. In many cases, abbreviated names are also capitalized since they contain proper nouns or are used so commonly on first reference: Levitt Center, Writing Center, Career Center. Lowercase on second reference more generic names such as library. academic titles See "titles" and "faculty chairs." academic year 2004-05, not 2004-2005. acronyms Avoid unfamiliar acronyms on first reference, and do not use them at all unless there are multiple references. When possible, substitute a clear synonym such as "the agency," "the bureau," "the consortium," etc. addresses Use abbreviations (Ave., Blvd., St.) only with a numbered address: He lived at 301 Elm St., Clinton. He lived on Elm Street in Clinton. The following are always spelled out: Alley, Road, Drive, Terrace. Admission, Admission Office Not Admissions with an "s." Capitalize. See "departments and offices." advisor Not adviser. affect, effect Affect is a verb meaning "to influence": His score on the history final will affect his grade. (Avoid use of "affect" as a noun.) Effect, as a verb, means "to cause": The new president will effect many changes in the company. Effect, as a noun, means "result": Her research measures the effects of global warming on Oneida Lake. African-American Hyphenate (same for other ethnic groups, such as Japanese-Americans); however, no hyphen in Native American. afterward Not afterwards. ages Always use figures: The student is 19 years old. The policy is 4 years old. Ages used as a noun or as an adjective before a noun require hyphens: The 19-year-old student won the prize. An age range does not require an apostrophe: The professor was in his 50s. ages of history, periods of time Capitalize widely recognized epochs in history as well as popular names for periods and events: the Bronze Ages, the Middle Ages, the Atomic Age, the Boston Tea Party. Capitalize only the proper nouns or adjectives in general descriptions: ancient Greece. Lowercase: He studied poetry from the 18th century. Hyphenate when used as a compound modifier: She studied 18th-century art. all-America Lowercase "all" as both an adjective and noun unless part of the official name: GTE All-America Team. But GTE academic all-American. alma mater Lowercase; no italics. alphabetizing Follow these general rules for creating lists: Names are alphabetized by the order of letters in the full last name: Macdonald would be alphabetized with "MAC"; McDonald would be "MCD." Both Saint Thomas and St. Thomas would be "SAI." Disregard any punctuation or spacing: O'Malley ("OMA") and d'Amico ("DAM").alumni Singular vs. plural: One man is an alumnus; one woman is an alumna; several men — or a group of men and women — are alumni; several women are alumnae. Casual references to "alum" should be avoided. Alumni All-Stars jazz band Alumni jazz band that traditionally performs during Reunion Weekend. Capitalize only Alumni All-Stars as this is the group's official name. Alumni Association Capitalize. Alumni Council Capitalize. alumni names, class years To designate an individual as an alumnus/a of Hamilton, use the name followed by the last two digits of the graduation year: Robert Brown '82. If the alumna is married, include her maiden name (name used as a student) followed by her married name: Susan Jones Brown '82. If the individual is a graduate of Kirkland College, designate with a "K" (no space between "K" and class year): Elizabeth Parker Smith K'76. When referring to a couple, only one of whom is an alumnus/a, place the class year next to the name of the alumnus/a to avoid confusion. In this case, Doug Smith is the alumnus and his wife is not: Susan and Doug '88 Smith. This is preferable to Doug '88 and Susan Smith where the alumnus' first and last names are quite separated. It is equally acceptable in prose to use: Doug Smith '88 and his wife Susan attended the event. When referring to a couple, both of whom are alumni, the common last name should be repeated: Doug Smith '88 and Susan Jones Smith '88. Repeating the last name is preferable to Doug '88 and Susan Jones Smith '88 since the husband's first and last names become quite separated. When referring to an alumnus/a who is also a parent, use the following: Doug Smith '88, P'01. When referring to a couple who are parents, but only one is an alumnus/a, place the class year next to the name of the alumnus/a, and place the parent designation at the end: Carol Smith Reed '82 and Matt Reed P'01. For clarification it is equally acceptable in prose to use: Carol Smith Reed '82 and her husband Matt Reed are the parents of Josh Smith '01. When referring to a couple, both of whom are alumni and parents, the common last name should be repeated and the parent designation placed at the end. Carol Smith Reed '82 and Matt Reed '82, P'01. Alumni Relations, Office of Not Alumni Programs or Alumni Affairs. Capitalize. See "departments and offices." Alumni Review Hamilton's magazine is the Hamilton Alumni Review. Use Alumni Review or Review on second reference. Italicize. See "composition titles." a.m. and p.m. Use periods. Lowercase. See "dates, months and times." and/or Do not use together. Reword sentence. annual Do not use "first annual." An event cannot be annual unless it has occurred two or more times. Annual Fund Capitalize when referring to the Hamilton Annual Fund: Your gift to the Annual Fund supports current students. article titles Use quotation marks. See "composition titles." athletic, athletics Traditionally, athletic is an adjective meaning "physically active," and athletics is a noun meaning "sports, exercises and games that require physical skill." Hamilton style follows common usage that allows athletic to serve also as an adjective: Jon Hind is Hamilton's athletic director. However: Jon Hind is director of athletics. athletic teams Names of Hamilton athletic teams are generally lowercase — the Hamilton men's basketball team, the women's tennis team. Exceptions are team and club names unique to Hamilton such as the Bicycle Cooperative and the Ski and Snowboard Guild. Bell Ringer Award Award traditionally presented during Reunion Weekend. Capitalize. biannually Use semiannually instead of biannually to mean twice a year. This avoids confusion since biennially means every other year. biennially Every two years or every other year. Board of Trustees Capitalize as a formal noun when referring specifically to Hamilton's Board of Trustees, otherwise lowercase: The Board of Trustees voted to approve the budget. (Note: This is a change from previous Hamilton style.) Lowercase "board" on second reference: The board will meet in Buttrick Hall. Note that board requires a singular verb. When using "trustee" alone, follow the rules under "titles": Trustee Jeff Little '71 or Jeff Little '71, a trustee of Hamilton. alumni trustees, nominated by the Alumni Council, are elected to the board by the general membership of the Alumni Association and serve for a single four-year term. book titles Italicize. See "composition titles." Bon Appétit The College's food service provider. Note spelling and accent. buildings and facilities See "Addendum A" for a list of formal and second-reference names of Hamilton buildings and facilities. capital campaign The complete name of Hamilton's current capital campaign is Excelsior: The Campaign for Hamilton College. On second reference, use the Excelsior Campaign; on third reference, the campaign. It is never necessary to put the campaign title in quotes or italics. captions Identify people in photos using these guidelines: With few people, insert (left), (right), (center) into sentence, using parentheses. With many people, use (from left) or (front row, from left). Subsequent rows need not indicate direction since a pattern has been established. catalogue Not catalog when referring to the Hamilton College Catalogue, which is italicized. CD No periods when used for compact disk or certificate of deposit. Central New York, Upstate New York Capitalize since the region should be widely known to most readers. chair, chairman, chairwoman "Chair" is preferred for simplification and to avoid gender bias; however, chairman or chairwoman is also acceptable — especially in cases where it is part of a person's official title: Stuart Scott '61, chairman of the Board of Trustees, wrote a letter to alumni. Susan Smith '06 serves as reunion gift chair. For capitalization guidelines, see "titles." chairs, department and program Faculty members serving as chair of a department or program should be identified as such on first reference in all cases. The chair designation is in addition to the full title: Elaine Heekin, associate professor of dance and chair of the Dance Department, directed the performance. Shelley Haley, professor of classics and chair of the Africana Studies Program, spoke at the conference. Consult the print College Catalogue "Academic Departments and Programs" section or the Hamilton telephone directory for current department and program chairs. chairs, endowed See "faculty chairs." cities The AP Stylebook lists cities that stand alone in prose without state affiliation: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Honolulu, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington. In publications for alumni, add the following New York towns and cities to that list: Clinton, Utica, Syracuse, Albany, Rochester, Buffalo. class agent Lowercase: He served as an Annual Fund class agent. Class of Capitalize the "C" when referring to a particular class with the year: The Class of 1999 celebrated its reunion. Class & Charter Day Awards convocation traditionally marking the end of the academic year. Capitalize and use ampersand. class years See "alumni names, class years." clubs and organizations Full names of student clubs and organizations are generally capitalized when using the group's full name, especially on first reference: Hamilton College Debate Society, the Wine-Tasting Club, the Study Buddy Club. Lowercase abbreviated forms of a name on second reference — such as the debate team, the wine-tasters' group, the study buddies — when it is clear that the reference is to the Hamilton organization. For a list of Hamilton clubs and organizations, see www.hamilton.edu/organizations. For a list of Hamilton's athletic teams, see www.hamilton.edu/athletics. See also "athletic teams." co- Use a hyphen when forming nouns, adjectives and verbs that show occupation status: co-author, co-chair, co-worker. Omit the hyphen in other combinations: coeducation, coexist, cooperative. collective nouns Nouns that denote a unit take singular verbs and pronouns: The class graduates in May. The group makes its recommendation. The committee is meeting to set its agenda. Note that team names take plural verbs: The Continentals are playing at Sage Rink. Exceptions to this rule are "couple," when used to refer to two people, and "family," when used to refer to a group. Both of these take plural verbs and pronouns: The couple were visiting campus to see their daughter on Family Weekend. They plan to see her again at Thanksgiving. When referring to a single unit, use a singular verb: Each couple was asked to contribute $10. See also "faculty." College On first reference with external audiences, use Hamilton College. It is not necessary to use the word "College" on second reference; the word "Hamilton" can stand alone. When referring to Hamilton as "the College" on second reference, use a capital "C." College colors, logo, seal See "Hamilton graphic identity." commas after states Use a comma after a state abbreviation. Bob lives in Reading, Pa., with his dog.For guidelines on placement, see "quotation marks." Commencement Capitalize when referring specifically to Hamilton College's graduation ceremony. Also Commencement Weekend. committees Capitalize major standing committees. Examples include committees of the Board of Trustees (Committee on Instruction, Committee on Buildings, Grounds and Equipment, Committee on Honorary Degrees, Committee on Budget and Finance, Committee on Investments, Committee on Development of Resources, Committee on Planning, Committee on Student Affairs, Committee on Admissions) and committees of the faculty (Board of Seven, Committee on Academic Policy, Committee on Appointments, Academic Council, Committee on Admission and Financial Aid, Committee on Academic Standing, Committee on the Library, Committee on Information Technology, Committee on Student Activities, Committee on Budget and Finance, Committee on Athletics). Other standing committees include the Alumni Council, the Honor Court, the Judicial Board, Health Professions Advisory Committee and others listed in the Faculty Handbook. Lowercase other committees that are more informal or that change members often such as reunion gift committee, senior gift committee, FebFest planning committee, etc. communication, concentration in Hamilton offers a concentration in communication (not communications with an "s"). Also Oral Communication Center. See "oral communication." complement, compliment Complement means "to supplement": The graphs complement his research paper. Compliment is an expression of courtesy: The professor complimented students on their hard work in her class. compose, comprise Compose means "to create or put together": She composed a song. The United States is composed of 50 states. Comprise means "to contain" and is best used only in the active voice: The United States comprises 50 states. The class comprises six men and seven women. Avoid "is comprised of." composition titles Italicize major and stand-alone works such as books, movies, periodicals or journals, newspapers, plays, television shows, paintings, CDs, symphonies. Smaller works and those contained within larger collections go in quotation marks, such as book chapters, article titles, poems and song titles. compound modifiers As a general rule, compound modifiers are hyphenated before the noun but not after the noun: The team scored in the first quarter. The team scored a first-quarter goal. However, when a modifier that would be hyphenated before a noun comes after a form of the verb "to be," the hyphen is usually retained: The scholar is well-known. The child was soft-spoken. Two words that are commonly associated together do not require a hyphen: the real estate agent, the health care system. Compounds that end in "'ly" are not hyphenated: the newly appointed dean; Hamilton's nationally ranked soccer team. concentrations The specific disciplines and programs in which a Hamilton student may concentrate are:
Use lowercase in prose: He earned a degree in geology. Exceptions, of course, are English, Asian studies, French, etc. Use of uppercase is acceptable in list form. It is also acceptable to refer to a concentration as a "major," especially in admission materials. Convocation Capitalize when referring to the event that opens Hamilton's academic year. Other events in which the faculty processes in academic regalia, such as Commencement and Class & Charter Day, are also considered convocations. Continentals Hamilton's nickname, referring to a Continental soldier. Use only when referring to an athletic team. course load Two words. course titles Full names of courses are capitalized but not set off in italics or with quotation marks: He took Professor Smith's course The Social Psychological Study of Self. Lowercase when not referring to proper name of course: He first met Professor Smith while taking his course on social development. course work Two words. dash Include a space before and after a dash when using to denote an abrupt change in thought or an empathic pause. May also be used to set off a series within a phrase: Hamilton's key messages — innovative curriculum, writing/speaking and research, enduring community and outcomes — have stood the test of time. em dash Long dash used in prose. To create on a Mac, type Shift/Option/Hyphen; to create on a PC, hold down the ALT key, and type 0151 on the number keypad, release the ALT key. dates, months and times Dates should not include "th," "nd" or "rd" after the day or the month: They were married on February 19 not February 19th. Use "th" when referring to a century or an anniversary: He studied paintings of the 19th century. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Writing Center. When a month is used with a date, abbreviate all but March, April, May, June and July: He was born on Feb. 14, 1956. Spell out when using alone, or with a year alone, and do not set off with a comma: He was born in December 1943 (not December of 1943). Valentine's Day is Feb. 14. When using a month, date and year, set off the year with commas: June 6, 1944, was D-Day. Times should use a.m. or p.m. (with periods) and no zeros: 3 p.m. Do not use 12 in front of noon or midnight. Do not repeat a.m. or p.m. when giving a time range: The workshop was scheduled for 3–5 p.m. (not 3 p.m.–5 p.m.) When indicating a span of time, print the words the reader should be reading, such as "from," "to," "between" and "and": We lived in Clinton from 1975 to 1986. He arrived at the reception between 11 p.m. and midnight. In other uses, use the en-dash: the 2007–08 academic year, the 2006–07 Annual Fund. The above guidelines may be amended for more formal uses such as invitations. See "Addendum B" — Style Guidelines for Invitation and Event Programs. dean of faculty Not dean of the faculty. Capitalize when referring to the Dean of Faculty's Office. Note that the dean's formal title is vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty; however, dean of faculty is preferred in most cases. Dean's List Capitalize. Possessive. decades Use an apostrophe to indicate numerals omitted. Show plural by adding "s": She grew up in the '80s. The 1920s marked the height of the Swing Era. department, program chairs See "chairs, department and program." departments and offices Capitalize names of College departments, programs and offices. List the area name first: Philosophy Department, not Department of Philosophy; Africana Studies Program, not Program in Africana Studies; Dean of Students Office, not Office of the Dean of Students. Lowercase "department" or "program" on second reference when it stands alone: He is a professor in the Chemistry Department and next year will be department chair. Lowercase academic disciplines when not referring to a department or program: The grant will support students interested in biology, psychology and physics. (Exceptions, of course, are areas such as English, Asian studies, French, etc.) dollars See "money." dorm, dormitory See "residence hall." download One word. Dr. Reserved for medical doctors and dentists. See "academic degrees." |
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