Editorial Style Guide

• Appropriate abbreviations for common partnerships are: Inc., P.A., P.L., LLP and LLC.
• Abbreviate titles when used before a full name, e.g., Dr., Sen., except in formal use (awards, etc.). Don't abbreviate President, Professor or Provost.
• Periods should be used in most two-letter abbreviations unless the generally accepted abbreviation either doesn't include them or the periods don't help to clarify the abbreviation (e.g., U.S., U.N. and U.K. all require periods, but AP, GI and EU all don't require periods).
• When referencing the United States, please write out the country first. Then, write U.S. as follows.

• Don't capitalize the names of fields of study, majors or minors wherever they appear, unless it's a language (English, Spanish, Latin, etc.).
• Don't capitalize the terms “major” or “minor” unless at the start of a sentence.
• As of summer 2019, we will no longer need periods when abbreviating a degree designation (BA, MA, PhD, etc.).
• Correct: The Stetson University JD/MBA program is offered exclusively at the university's Gulfport campus. John Smith MBA ‘09, JD ‘12
• In narrative text, refer only to the highest earned degree and the university at which the degree was earned; in lists (e.g., view books, faculty web pages, etc.) all degrees and colleges/universities may be listed.
• Don't use hyphens when referring to academic degrees and programs.
• Spell out academic program names on first use. Afterward, acronyms without periods are acceptable.
• Example: Stetson's Program in Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies, SPREES
• Example: Roland George Investments Program, RGIP

Degrees and Their Abbreviations

• Bachelor of Arts - BA
• Bachelor of Science - BS
• Bachelor of Business Administration - BBA
• Bachelor of Music - BM
• Bachelor of Music Education - BME
• Doctor of Philosophy - PhD
• Executive Master of Business Administration - EMBA
• Juris Doctor - JD
• Master of Accountancy - MAcc
• Master of Arts - MA

• On first reference, spell out the full name of the organization (e.g., Campus Life and Student Success). Don't use the acronym in parentheses after the name. If an acronym can't be obviously recognized on a stand-alone basis on subsequent references, don't use it.
• Correct: The School of Business Administration is located in the Lynn Business Center off of Michigan Avenue, and although the LBC is six floors, it has two elevators for those who can't use the stairs
• Incorrect: The School of Business Administration is located in the Lynn Business Center (LBC).
• Acronyms should be used on subsequent references except when starting a new sentence unless the acronym is universally recognizable (e.g., ABA, FBI, SAT). Otherwise, spell out the full name at the start of a new sentence.
• Avoid overuse of acronyms. They can break the narrative flow.

• For formal invitations, awards, citations, titles and ads, write out the street name (Boulevard, Avenue, Drive, Road, Apartment, etc.). For stories, announcements and web writing where a specific number is associated with the street name, use the commonly accepted abbreviation for the word.
• Write unit numbers as follows:
• Correct: Unit 1234
• Incorrect: Unit #1234
• Write out full state names in narrative text if the name is used alone and if it follows a city (e.g., DeLand, Florida). The only acceptable use of the postal abbreviation (e.g., FL) is in mailing addresses.
• When writing a city and state, be sure to use a comma after the city and a comma after the state within a sentence.
• Ex. Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, provides opportunities for students to meet future employers during their Career Expo.
• Use Ave., St., and Blvd. only with a numbered address (e.g., 421 N. Woodland Blvd.).
• Likewise, use N. S. E. or W. only with a numbered address (e.g., 421 N. Woodland Blvd.).
• Spell out Avenue, Street, Boulevard, North, South, East, and West if no number is used (e.g., North Woodland Boulevard).
• Always spell out Drive, Road, Lane, Alley and similar short address locators.

• When referring to a graduate of Stetson University, either note the graduate's degree and class year or simply their class year without using a comma.
• Correct: John Smith BA '07, John Smith '07
• When referring to a graduate of Stetson University who has earned multiple degrees from the institution, note each of the class years degrees unless space is an issue.
• Correct: John Smith '07, JD '10
• Don't project graduation years for any student.
• List undergraduates by their class designation or class year (e.g., first-year, sophomore, junior, senior, class of 2020, etc.).
• List graduate students by their program name (Master in Teacher Education student, M.BA student, etc.).
• List College of Law students by their year at Stetson University (first-year, second-year, etc.).
• Don't capitalize alma mater.
• “Alumni” is plural and refers to a group of people. “Alumnus” is singular and refers to one former student.
• “Alumnae” is plural and refers to a group of female, former students. “Alumna” refers to one female, former student.
• Refer to alumni or graduates. Do not use the more informal “alum” or “alums” except in social media.
• Two gender-neutral singular terms:
• “Graduate” can refer to any gender as long as the person has graduated (Note: not all alumni have graduated.)
• “Alumnus” can refer to any gender.
• List part-time students as such.
• See Quick Reference: Gender-Neutral Language

• When referring to a building for the first time in narrative text, use its full name. Subsequent referrals may use an accepted abbreviation in informal writing (e.g., CUB for Carlton Union Building).
• When referring to a building and room number, use the building's name followed by its room number (e.g., Carlton Union Building 201). In informal writing, when subsequent referrals are made and an accepted abbreviation exists, it may be used.
• The word “campus” should be lowercase.
• Per accreditation rules, only the DeLand and Gulfport campuses can be referred to as campuses. The Tampa Law Center should never be referred to as a campus; instead, it should be referred to as a satellite location, center or by its full names.
• When identifying room numbers, don't abbreviate the word “room” and always associate the building name with the room number. When writing a list of rooms, write the name of the building first followed by the room number(s) (e.g., Carlton Union Building room 101, 102 and 103).

• The proper name of a degree is spelled out and capitalized (e.g., Bachelor of Art).
• Fields of study are not capitalized (e.g., digital arts, science, finance).
• Languages, even as a field of study, are proper nouns and always capitalized (e.g., English, French).
• Proper names of an office, department or program are capitalized (e.g., Office of University Marketing, Department of Education, Digital Arts Program).
• In formal writing, capitalize the initial letters of each word in the full, formal names of departments and offices except for words less than four letters and conjunctions. In informal writing, departments may be referred to informally.
• Correct: (Formal): Office of Academic Affairs; (Informal): Academic Affairs
• Correct: (Formal): Department of English; (Informal): the English department
• When referring to specific awards, grants, loans and scholarships, use the full name and capitalize the name on first reference. In subsequent references, capitalize only the award type.
• Correct: Homer and Dolly Hand Award on first reference; Hand award on subsequent reference.
• Capitalize and spell out formal titles such as Chairperson or Provost when they precede a name. Otherwise, use lowercase.
• Don't capitalize the word “university” unless using the full name of the institution.
• See Quick Reference: Titles of Published Works for title capitalization rules.
• Capitalize T in “The” only if it is widely recognized (e.g., The Ohio State University, The New York Times or The Florida Bar) and only if the reference would be awkward without it.
• Capitalize “department” and “office” only when used as part of an official name.

Capitalize

• Article titles in Faculty Forum
• Board of Trustees (when referring to the university's Board of Trustees)
• Constitutional amendments (First Amendment, 10th Amendment)
• Names of colleges and schools
• Names of designated rooms
• Names of official groups
• Publication issues/editions published by season (the Spring 2019 issue)
• Specific events (e.g., Commencement, Convocation, Homecoming, etc.)
• The Florida Bar
• Class titles (when referring to a specific class)

Don't Capitalize

• Annual meeting, board meeting, annual conference
• Board of Trustees (in the general sense)
• Class (in the general sense, subject or topic names
• College
• Constitution(al) (for an organization)
• Courses
• Executive committee, executive board
• Semesters/seasons

Commas

• Stetson University's style does not use a comma before a conjunction in a series unless it's necessary to distinguish elements (the Oxford comma).
• Correct: one, two, three and four.
• Example The committee discussed the climate survey, retention and persistence. (No comma before and.)
• Incorrect: one, two, three, and four.
• Example: The committee discussed the value of two things: campus climate, and retention and persistence. (The second “and” requires the use of a comma after “climate" to clarify that "retention and persistence" is considered one entity.)
• Exception: If the series includes an item that consists of two items joined by a conjunction, then the Oxford Comma is required before the conjunction at the end of the series.
• Correct: Students will become more skilled in public speaking, outlining and composing research papers, and creating and giving presentations, to prepare them for their senior research project.
• Incorrect: Students will become more skilled in public speaking, outlining and composing research papers and creating and giving presentations, to prepare them for their senior research project.

Punctuation

• % only in charts, spell out in copy. Do not hyphenate.
• Don't use the ampersand (&) except when it's part of an official name.
• Colon used properly (not after verbs and prepositions.)
• Correct: Stetson University has two campuses: one in DeLand, Florida, and one in Gulfport, Florida.
• Incorrect: Stetson University has two campuses including one in DeLand, Florida, and one in Gulfport, Florida.
• Use an ellipsis (...) only to designate the omission of words from text. There is no space between periods in an ellipsis and no space between the word and the ellipsis.
• Use commas when appropriate instead of em dash.
• Use hyphens for compound adjectives describing nouns.
• Examples: entry-level, well-being
• Use only one space between sentences.
• Use a semicolon to set off a series that includes commas.
• Example: The conference has people who have come from Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York; Los Angeles, California; and other places.
• Use a colon before items that can stand on their own as complete sentences (e.g., Note: Please use proper grammar.).
• Use a colon to introduce an item or a series of items. Do not capitalize the first item after the colon unless it begins a complete sentence or is a proper noun.
• Appositives:
• Separate appositives when the information is not essential to the noun described (e.g., John Smith ‘80 and his wife, Jane, announce a son...).
• If the information is essential, it should not be separated in commas.
• Since most professors have more than one publication, always assume that the name of the publication or presentation is essential.
• Commas:
• Don't insert a comma before professional association abbreviations such as P.A., LLP, etc. Always use the full name of a firm instead of using “et al.”
• Don't use commas before suffixes, e.g., Sr., Jr., III, etc.
• Correct: John F. Kennedy Jr.
• Incorrect: John F. Kennedy, Jr.
• Dashes:
• In print, use an en dash (–) without spaces for periods of time (e.g., 2012-2013).
• In print, use an em dash (—) with spaces to indicate abrupt changes in sentences or phrases. There should be a space before and after the em dash.
• On the web, use a single dash for all hyphenations.

• Use “e-commerce”, “e-book”, “e-reader” or “e-business”.
• Use “email” and not “e-mail”.
• Use “home page” and not “homepage” or “home-page”.
• The word “internet” should not be capitalized.
• Login/Log in
  • Use “login” when referring to a username.
  • Use “log in” when referring to an action.
  • Don't capitalize unless at the start of a sentence.
  • “Login” is preferred over “logon”, “signin”, “signon” or other similar terms.
  • When working with a form, a username field should be labeled “Username”.
• Use “online” and not “on-line” or “on line”.
• Operating Systems:
  • Use “Apple Mac OS X”, not “OS X”.
  • Use “Microsoft Windows” followed by the version designation or number if referring to a specific version, and “Microsoft Windows” if referring to the operating system in general.
• Use “page view” and not “pageview” or “page-view”.
• Use “sitemap” and not “site map” or “site-map”.
• Use “username” and not “user name” or “user-name”.
• Use “VoIP” and not “VOIP”.
• Use “website” and not “web site” or “web-site”.
• Use “Webpage” (print) and “webpage” (Web) and not “web page” or “web-page”.
• Always capitalize the term “Web” when it appears as a reference to the World Wide Web (print) but don't capitalize it in web writing.
• Use “Wi-Fi” when referring to the wireless networking protocol and “wireless” when referring to wireless accessibility.
• World Wide Web/Web
  • “World Wide Web” should always be capitalized.
  • “Web” should be capitalized when referring to the World Wide Web.
  • “Web” should not be capitalized when used as an adjective.
• The device manufacturer isn't necessary when referring to a commonly known device (e.g., iPad, iPhone).

• In formal writing, use the formal name of the department, division, council or group on first reference; subsequent references should use informal names.
  • Correct: (First reference): Department of Human Resources, (Subsequent reference): HR or Human Resources department
• When referring to a college or school, capitalize its name appropriately when referring to the Stetson University college or school. When referring to a college or school in a generic sense, don't capitalize its name.
  • Correct: The School of Business Administration, the business school.
  • Incorrect: The school of Business, the Business School.

• Do not use the year if the event, meeting, etc. is happening in the current year.
  • Exceptions: formal invitations and programs for special university events when the date is significant to the event such as commencement, convocation, etc.
• Semesters? Spring 2018 (capitalize)
• No comma between months and year
  • Correct: April 2014
  • Incorrect: April of 2014
  • Incorrect: April, 2014
• Set off the year with commas before and after.
  • Correct: Join us on April 15, 2014, in Rinker Auditorium.
  • Incorrect: Join us on April 15, 2014 in Rinker Auditorium.
• Do not use th, nd, rd after the day.
  • Correct: Summer starts on June 20 each year.
  • Incorrect: Summer starts on June 20^th each year.

• Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2015, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
  • Also, be sure to add spaces between the times and hyphens for clarity.
• Use noon instead of 12 p.m. and midnight instead of 12 a.m.
• Do not abbreviate months with five letters or less.
• Academic years
  • Correct: 2012-2013
  • Incorrect: 2012/2013, 2012-13, 2012/13
• Use numerals for the date and time of day except noon and midnight in all publications unless the nature of the publication requires that they be spelled out (e.g., formal invitations).
  • Correct: 8 a.m. - noon, 6 p.m. - midnight
  • Correct: Sept. 1, 2017, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m
  • Incorrect: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 9 p.m.-12 a.m.
• Avoid redundancies such as “10 a.m. this morning” or “10 p.m. Monday night.”
• Don't use a comma between seasons or months and year, even when referring to semesters; seasons are written in lowercase.
  • Correct: The visiting professor will be starting in August 2012.
  • Correct: The senior class will graduate in spring 2013.
  • Correct: The spring 2013 semester will start in January 2013.
  • Incorrect: The visiting professor will be starting in August, 2012.
  • Incorrect: The senior class will graduate in Spring, 2013.
  • Incorrect: The Spring 2013 semester will start in January 2013.
• Use only necessary digits for the time of day (e.g., 8 p.m., not 8:00 p.m. or 10-11:30 a.m., not 10:00 - 11:30 a.m.).
• The designations a.m. and p.m. are lowercase and use periods after each letter.
• Express years or times in parallel construction: from 1997 to 2007, or from 9 to 10:30 a.m.
• Avoid “from” with a dash as in “from 9 - 10:30 a.m.” or “from 1997-2007.”
• Use B.C. and A.D. to indicate “Before Christ” and “Anno Domini” (Latin for in the year of the Lord).
• Midnight/noon
  • Correct: 10 a.m.-noon, 10 p.m.-midnight
  • Incorrect: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 9 p.m.-12 a.m.
• Months
  • Capitalize the names of months in all uses.
  • When a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov. and Dec. Spell out when using alone or with a year alone. Don't abbreviate March, April, May, June or July.
  • When using only a month and a year, don't separate the year with commas.
  • Correct: May 2018
  • Incorrect: May, 2018
  • When using a month, day and year, set off the year with commas.
  • Correct: Commencement will be May 1, 2018, at the stadium.
    
  • Incorrect: Commencement will be May 1 2018 at the stadium.
    
  • In tabular material such as tables, use three-letter forms without a period: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec.

• Use gender-neutral language whenever possible to maintain a natural flow of words.
• Correct: Chair, letter carrier, spokesperson
• Incorrect: Chairman/Chairwoman, mailman, spokesman/spokeswoman
• Avoid the gender-neutral-but-awkward "his or her" possessive. To do, rephrase the sentence using a plural antecedent.
• Correct: All students will receive their ID cards.
• Incorrect: All students will receive his or her ID card.

• Do not mention someone's race unless it is germane to the topic.
• Dual heritage: No hyphen (a change in 2019 from the previous style) for terms such as African American, Asian American and Filipino American, used when relevant to refer to an American person's heritage.
• The terms are less common when used to describe non-Americans, but may be used when relevant
• Example: Turkish German for a German of Turkish descent

• Spell out the numbers one through nine and use numbers for numbers 10 and over.
• Examples: 8-bit, 16-bit, 5 million
• Very large numbers shouldn't be abbreviated and should be expressed as follows:
• Correct: 9 million
• Incorrect: 9,000,000
• Currency should be written as follows:
• Use the dollar symbol and a figure: $5
• Spell out "cents" when used alone: 62 cents
• Use the percentage mark (%) in tabular material and text. (This is a change in AP style from summer 2019.)
• In casual uses, use words rather than figures and numbers.
• Example: She said he has a zero percent chance of winning.
• Write out large numbers as follows:
• Combining dollars and cents should be written as $1.23.
• Correct: $12 million
• Incorrect: $9,000,000, $12,000,000,000, 9 million dollars
• Spell out and don't abbreviate large numbers (million, billion) and unit numbers (bits, miles, etc.).
• When large numbers must be spelled out, use a hyphen to connect a word ending in "y" to another word. Don't use commas between other separate words that are part of one number.
• Correct: twenty-four, thirty-one
• Incorrect: twenty four, thirty one
• Use figures for credit hours, grade-point averages, standardized test scores and units. Don't add commas to scores that reach into the thousands.
• Don't go beyond two decimal places.

• Positions and titles shouldn't be capitalized unless they precede the holder's name. Use the holder's last name on second reference instead of referring to the position or title.
• Correct: Director of Creative Services John Smith; John Smith, director of creative services
• General professional titles before the holder's name shouldn't be capitalized unless used as a courtesy title.
• Correct: The lead defense attorney is civil rights lawyer John Smith.
• The names of endowed chairs should be capitalized and referred to in full on first reference.
• Correct: John Smith '92, JD '96
• Don't use courtesy titles except indirect quotations or to distinguish between more than one person of the same last name.
• Don't use Dr. before the holder's name unless the holder is a medical doctor. Instead, use "PhD" after the holder's name (e.g., John Smith, PhD).

• Use hyphens throughout the telephone number:
• Correct: 386-822-7000, 1-800-688-0101, 011-44-20-7535 (U.K.)
• Incorrect: (386)822-7000, 1.800.688.0101
• Write extensions as follows:
• Correct: 386-822-7000 ext. 1234
• Incorrect: 386-822-7000x1234
• Telephone numbers should be assumed to be U.S.-based. The telephone number will give itself away as international.

#

800 number

Do not use. See Stetson University ID below for proper term of use.

A

A Capella

Two words, no capitalization, e.g., a capella group.

B

Banner

Banner is the enterprise resource management system the university uses to store, organize and maintain many university records. It should be referred to as MyStetson or my.stetson.edu

Bluemner, Oscar

American modernist painter Oscar Bluemner (1867-1938). The university hold an important collection of his works. The Vera Bluemner Kouba Collection is named after the artist's daughter, who donated the collection to the university.

C

Canvas

Canvas is a web-based application that allows Stetson University faculty to deliver course content and other class-related material to students.

Carlton Union Building, CUB

The abbreviation is acceptable on second reference to the Carlton Union Building when the piece is directed at an internal audience that would be familiar with the term.

Catalog

The catalog should be referred to as the Stetson University Catalog. the Stetson University Bulletin is its former name.

CLaSS

Acronym for Campus Life and Student Success, an administrative division.

Coffeeshop

Per Dining Services, the coffee shop is to be referred to as such, not as the coffee shop, the coffee house or the coffeehouse.

Commencement

Use to refer to the annual graduation ceremony/ceremonies held in the spring.

Convocation

Use to refer to the event at the beginning of the academic year to induct incoming first-year students.

Coursework

Write as one word with no spaces.

Curriculum Vitae, CV

Acceptable in all uses for Curriculum Vitae.

D

Dean's list

Don't capitalize this term.

Decades

No apostrophe, e.g., 2010s, 1980s

DeLand

Always capitalize the L because the city is named after Henry Addison DeLand.

Dual Degrees

Not "joint degrees": Students may earn the J.D./M.BA dual degree at Stetson.

duPont-Ball Library

The d in duPont must be lower-case.

E

e.g./i.e.

• e.g. is short for Latin exempli gratia and means for example. Follow with a comma.
• i.e. is short for the Latin id est and means that is. Follow with a comma.
• Use e.g. to indicate a list in which all items are not present; use i.e. to add clarity to indicate specificity.

Endowed Chairs

Include the full title in first reference to faculty in endowed positions; e.g. Dr. John Smith, Sam R. Marks Chair of Religion.
It's not necessary to use the full title on the first reference if writing headlines, unless it's relevant to the story.

F

Faculty

• When referring to faculty as one collective group, the word is singular.
• When referring to individual faculty members, the term can be considered plural.
• An easy way to avoid confusion is to use "faculty members" to clarify that multiple individuals are being referenced.

First-Year

Stetson University refers to freshman students as first-year students.

FOCUS

Acronym for Friends On Campus Uniting Students, a comprehensive orientation program. Use FOCUS Orientation on first reference. FOCUS is acceptable on second reference.

Fundraising, fundraiser

Spell as one word with no hyphens.

G

Gillespie Museum of Minerals

Full name of the earth-science museum on campus. Gillespie Museum is acceptable on second reference.

GPA

Grade-point average. GPA is acceptable in all references.

Graduate

Always use in the active voice.

• Correct: He graduated from Stetson University.
• Incorrect: He was graduated from Stetson University.

Green, Stetson

Stetson Green is the green space between the Carlton Union Building and the duPont-ball Library. Stetson GREEN also refers to the Stetson Global and Regional Eco-Expertise Network.

Gulfport campus

• The Stetson University College of Law is located in Gulfport, FL, adjacent to St. Petersburg.
• When describing the law school's location, include "adjacent to St. Petersburg" or "in the Tampa Bay area" to avoid confusion with Mississippi.
• Refer to programs taking place at this campus as taking place at the Gulfport campus, not at the law school.

H

Hands-on

Not hands on.

Hatters

Using the term Hatters is acceptable when referring to Athletics or invoking school spirit.

HATS

Acronym for High Achieving Talented Students academic enrichment program. HATS is acceptable in all references.

Howard Frankland Bridge

Not the Howard Franklin Bridge.

I

ID Card

This is the preferred way to refer to a Stetson University ID card.

i.e./e.g.

• i.e. is short for the Latin id est and means that is. Follow with a comma.
• e.g. is short for Latin exempli gratia and means for example. Follow with a comma.
• Use i.e. to add clarity to indicate specificity; use e.g. to indicate a list in which all items are not present.

In/into

• In is used to indicate location: She was in the room.
• Into id used to indicate motion: She walked into the room.

Inclusivity

Use gender-neutral language.

Institute for International and Comparative Law

Don't use "Summer" Institute for International and Comparative Law.

J

Jargon

Try to avoid use of special vocabulary or idioms particular to a specific group or area of specialization unless the verbiage is in wide use and is easily recognized.

K

Keynote

Lowercase unless at the start of a sentence, e.g., keynote address, keynote speaker.

L

Libby, President Wendy B.

Always use President Libby's middle initial on first references. On second reference, use President Libby or Libby.

• Correct: President Wendy B. Libby; Dr. Wendy B. Libby; Wendy B. Libby, president

Libby, Dr. Richard M.

Dr. Libby's husband should be referred to as Dr. Richard M. Libby on first reference.

M

Monthlong

No hyphens or spaces needed.

N

Names

On first reference, use first and last names (with title when appropriate). On subsequent references, use the last name only.

• If the person is widely known by another combination of their first, middle and last names, use the name for which they are most widely known.

No comma before suffixes.

Nonprofit

Write this term without hyphens or spaces.

O

OK

Per AP Style, use "OK" in all caps (OK, OK's, OK'd) over any other form.

On campus/on-campus/off campus/off-campus

• On-campus/off-campus is a unit modifier ("The students live in on-campus housing.").
• On campus/off campus shows adverbial location ("I have a job on campus.").

Ongoing

Not on-going or on going.

Orientation

Don't capitalize when used in a general sense or on a second reference. Capitalize only when part of the name of an event or program.

P

Palm Court

This term refers to the area between Elizabeth Hall, the duPont-Ball Library, Sampson Hall and Minnesota Avenue on the DeLand campus and should be capitalized. It is commonly referred to as the quad.

PhD

In narrative text, the preferred form is to refer to a degree holder as having a doctorate and name the area of specialty.

Pregame

Not pre-game or pre-game.

Postdoctoral degree

Not post-doctoral or post-doctoral degree.

President

Lowercase unless used as a title before a name.

Professor

Don't abbreviate. Don't capitalize unless it's used as either a courtesy or formal title (e.g. Professor Jones, Professor of History John Smith).

Professor Emeritus, Professor Emerita, Professors Emeriti, Profressors Emeritae

These are the preferred terms for a male professor, female professor, male professor or female professor who has retired.

Provost

Lowercase unless used as a title before a name. Don't abbreviate.

R

Rankings

Spell out first through ninth; beginning with 10th, use figures. Don't use superscripts. Abbreviate to "No." if listing with ordinal (e.g., "No. 1 in advocacy").

Registered trademarks

Registered trademarks must be capitalized (e.g., Band-Aid, Google).

Registrar

Lowercase unless used as a title before a name or as part of the formal name of an office.

Residence halls

Residence hall is the preferred term over dormitory or dorm.

Resume

Write this word without accent marks in both print and web, but write the sentence in such a way that the meaning of the word can be discerned from the context in which it's used.

S

Seasons

Lowercase fall, winter, spring, summer and all derived words (e.g., springtime, summertime) unless they art part of a formal name.

Second references

• Don't capitalize second references of partial names of organizations unless they can stand independently as proper nouns.
• Don't repeat an acronym in parentheses with the first reference; if the acronym can't be obviously recognized on second reference, don't use it at all.

Semester

Lowercase unless at the start of a sentence.

Slideshow

Not slide-show or slide show.

Social Security number/SSN

Use initial caps on "Social Security" only. Avoid SS# and the redundant SSN#.

Stetson

Don't refer to "Stetson" by itself unless referring to the John B. Stetson Company founded in 1865 by John B. Stetson.

Stetson Showcase

Use this term to refer to the annual Stetson Undergraduate Research and Creative Arts Symposium. Note that this event is formerly known as SURCAS and is now known as the Stetson Showcase.

Stetson University

• Never use the term "Stetson" for Stetson University. Instead, refer to "Stetson University" or "StetsonU."
• Never use the term "SU" unless writing for the Department of Athletics.
• The Stetson University College of Law should be referred to in full and never as the "Stetson College of Law." However, "Stetson Law" is permitted in headlines or on second reference.
• For the College of Law, the term "College of Law" may be omitted if referring to a Stetson University entity that already has "law" in its title.
• When the word "university" appears by itself, don't capitalize it.

Stetson University ID number, SUID

Use Stetson University ID on first reference in formal writing. Use SUID over any other form on second reference and in writing directed to any Stetson University internal audience that would know the term immediately. Never use the term "800 number" when referring to an SUID as that term is associated closely with toll-free telephone numbers.

Study abroad

Don't capitalize and write as two words.

T

Tampa Law Center

Don't refer to the Tampa Law Center as the Tampa campus. Refer to it in full on first reference and as the "Tampa satellite campus" on second reference. It is located "adjacent to" or "at the entrance of" downtown Tampa, but not "in downtown Tampa."

Theater/Theatre

The preferred spelling is theater except when referring in any way to the Theatre Arts department or program.

Transfer

Lowercase when used to classify students.

Trustee Emeritus, Trustee Emerita, Trustees Emeriti, Trustees Emeritae

These are the preferred terms for a male trustee, female trustee, male trustees (or a mixed group or female trustees who have stepped down from the university's Board of Trustees.

V

Veterans

Don't include an apostrophe when referring to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veteran Affairs Yellow Ribbon Program, the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims or Veterans Day.

W

Work study

• Write as two words when referring to the program (e.g., Federal Work Study program).
• Hyphenate when using as an adjective (e.g., The work-study student started in January.).
• Don't capitalize unless at the start of a sentence.

WORLD: International Learning

The WORLD: International Learning office should be written as such on first reference. "International Learning office" is acceptable on second reference.

Y

Yearlong, year-end, year-round

Yearlong is one word. Hyphenate year-end and year-round.

Z

Zipcar

This is the proper way to write the company's name.

ZIP code

This is the preferred way to refer to a U.S.-based postal code. In the case of international postal codes, clearly note the country that the address is located within in order to minimize confusion.

• Capitalize the principal words in titles, including prepositions and conjunctions of four or more letters and words of fewer than four letters if used as the first or last word in a title.
• Put titles of case, court decisions, online publications, published books, magazines, newspapers and periodicals in italics.
• Don't use italics for titles of informal websites, blogs, TV shows or social media platforms.
• Put titles of articles chapters, lectures, theses, research papers, presentations and dissertations in double quotation marks.