Style Guide

The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Style Guide

This guide is a compilation of style and usage items often used by college faculty and staff. See also the University Style Guide.

Questions? Contact:
Martha Filipic, (614) 292-9833


4-H’er

4-H member is preferred, but 4-H'er may be used. Spell out “4” only at the start of a sentence: “Four-H clubs in Madison County....” or recast the sentence: "Madison County 4-H clubs...." 

A

acronyms 

In general, acronyms and abbreviations should be spelled out on first reference (e.g., U.S. Department of Agriculture). An acronym (USDA) can be used on second reference. If the audience is likely to be unfamiliar with the acronym, put it in parentheses immediately after the first reference: Best Management Practices (BMPs). 

advisor or adviser

The preferred spelling is advisor, with an o. For news releases, follow AP Style and use “adviser” unless you’re referring to 4-H advisors. 

affect or effect

Affect is almost always used as a verb and means to influence or pretend to have something.

  • The change in funding will affect millions of people.
  • The cookie thief affected an innocent manner.

Effect is almost always a noun that means result. It is occasionally used as verb to mean to mean to bring about.

  • The chairperson questioned the effect of the budget cut.
  • Management effected some personnel changes. 

ampersand 

Generally, spell out the word “and” instead of using the ampersand (&) symbol. Exceptions include expressions such as “R&D” or instances in which the ampersand is part a company's or corporation's official name (AT&T). 

assure or ensure or insure

Use assure when speaking directly to a person, to give him or her confidence in a promise.

  • The teacher assured them that they would be safe. 

Use ensure when the meaning is to make certain or to guarantee.

  • Proofreading is necessary to ensure accuracy.  

Limit the use of insure to references involving insurance.

  • The new homeowners will insure the property for $200,000.

B

bulleted lists

If the bulleted item completes a sentence, or is a complete sentence in and of itself, capitalize the first letter of each bulleted item and add a period at the end of each item.  

The student has already taken:

  • A general math course.
  • An advanced physics course.
  • Three language courses.

If the bulleted items are a simple list, do not capitalize and do not add periods.

Peppers come in a variety of colors:

  • red
  • orange
  • yellow
  • green

 

In either case, it is not necessary to include “and” before the last item on the list. Indent bulleted items as you would any paragraph.

(Note: This recommendation varies from the University Editorial Style Guide.)

C

comma series

When listing three or more items, a comma should precede the conjunction (e.g., green, yellow, and red peppers.) Exception: When writing for a newspaper, follow Associated Press style which calls for no comma before the conjunction unless:

  • It is part of a proper name (green, yellow and red peppers, but College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences).
  • It is necessary for clarity’s sake, especially with longer clauses. (Faculty members are expected to teach increasing numbers of students, conduct publishable research, and engage in outreach activities.)
  • One of the terms in the series already has a conjunction within it (... a motel, a bed and breakfast, and a university guest house...).

D

dollars 

Use the $ symbol and numerals: $100 (not 100 dollars or one hundred dollars). For large figures, use this format: $150 million (not $150,000,000).  

E

e-mail

Lowercase, hyphenated

F

fax 

Lowercase

G

H 

I

its or it’s

Its is the possessive form of the pronoun it. It’s is a contraction for it is or it has.

  • The Board of Trustees reached its decision.
  • It’s never too late to learn something new. 

J

K

L 

M

N

 

numbers 

Spell out numbers one through nine (“four varieties”). Use numerals for 10 or more and for fractions (“15 cultivars,” “3.5 liters”). Spell out numbers that begin a sentence, or rewrite the sentence so it doesn’t begin with a number. In cases of proper names, use the format in the proper name (Big Ten). 

O

official organizational names and references 

online

One word, no hyphen.

organizational relationships


P

percent

Spelling out percent is preferred, although % may be used if space is at a premium. Use numerals in front of percent, unless starting a sentence.

  • They asked 50 percent of the students. One percent of the faculty attended.  

phone numbers 

Use parentheses or hyphens to separate the numbers: (614) 292-2011 or 614-292-2011. When writing for newspapers, use parentheses for the area code (following AP Style). Do not use periods to separate the numbers. 

proved or proven

Proved is the past participle of the verb prove. Proven is acceptable as an adjective only.

  • The sales figures have proved the merits of advertising.
  • This breed is a proven success based on carcass evaluations. 


Q

R
S

spaces after punctuation marks

Both the Chicago Manual of Style and the AP Stylebook insist on one space, not two, after periods, colons and other punctuation marks in published material.  

state names 

Spell out state names when used alone. Use two-letter ZIP code abbreviations only when the entire address, including ZIP code, is used; otherwise, use the standard abbreviations in conjunction with a city or town name:  

  • Ala. (AL)
  • Alaska (AK)
  • Ariz. (AZ)
  • Ark. (AR)
  • Calif. (CA)
  • Colo. (CO)
  • Conn. (CT)
  • Del. (DE)
  • Fla. (FL)
  • Ga. (GA)
  • Hawaii (HI)
  • Idaho (ID)
  • Ill. (IL)
  • Ind. (IN)
  • Iowa (IA)
  • Kan. (KS)
  • Ky. (KY)
  • La. (LA)
  • Maine (ME)
  • Md. (MD)
  • Mass. (MS)
  • Mich. (MI)
  • Minn. (MN)
  • Miss. (MS)
  • Mo. (MO)
  • Mont. (MT)
  • Neb. (NE)
  • Nev. (NV)
  • N.H. (NH)
  • N.J. (NJ)
  • N.M. (NM)
  • N.Y. (NY)
  • N.C. (NC)
  • N.D. (ND)
  • Ohio (OH)
  • Okla. (OK)
  • Ore. (OR)
  • Pa. (PA)
  • R.I. (RI)
  • S.C. (SC)
  • S.D. (SD)
  • Tenn. (TN)
  • Texas (TX)
  • Utah (UT)
  • Vt. (VT)
  • Va. (VA)
  • Wash. (WA)
  • W.Va. (WV)
  • Wis. (WI)
  • Wyo. (WY)

T

that or which

A simple decision-making device: If using “which,” set off the clause with a comma. No comma is necessary when using “that.”  

The correct choice here involves identifying restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses in a sentence. A nonrestrictive clause is not essential to the meaning of the sentence; the sentence’s meaning can be understood if the clause were omitted. Use “which” and set off the clause with a comma:

  • The arboretum, which provides a nice setting for a picnic, offers an important tool in teaching area residents about plant selection, growth, and health.

A restrictive clause is essential in helping define the meaning of a sentence. Use “that,” and do not set off with commas: 

  • A study that the Section of Communications and Technology commissioned from the area’s top marketing firm proved essential in gathering support for recommended changes.

that or who

Who or whom are used when referring to people. Use that or which to refer to objects and plants. Use that or which when referring to animals, unless the animal’s sex is known or the animal has been given a name; in those cases, use who.

  • The speaker, who is from Ohio State, will lead the discussion.
  • The desk, which I bought last week, is a reproduction.
  • The toad that won was the only brown toad in the race.
  • Miss Holly Grace, who was the equine model for these 4-H pictures, was trained by Robert Kline.

trademarks

For newsletters, news releases and other informal writing, use the proper name of a brand product, complete with capitalization. It is not necessary to use the trademark symbol (®) except in advertising, sales materials or formal writing (such as a research publication). Generally, try to use a generic equivalent (facial tissue instead of Kleenex; artificial grass instead of AstroTurf) unless the brand name is essential to your meaning. 


U

V 

W

 

web site 

Two words, lowercase, except when writing for newspapers: The AP Stylebook and the Chicago Manual of Style still recommend Web site (two words, uppercase W).   

World Wide Web 

Second reference: the web

X 

Y

 

years 

No apostrophe when referring to decades or centuries: the 1990s; the 1800s. Use a backwards apostrophe (the single close-quote mark) when dropping the first two numerals: the ’60s.


Z


In compiling this guide, we’ve drawn from several sources: 

  • The Chicago Manual of Style, The Essential Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers 15th Edition, published by the University of Chicago Press. The Section of Communications and Technology follows this manual for publications. It is available in the reference section at many bookstores.
  • Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition, published by Merriam-Webster Inc.

Other recommended references include: 

  • The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, published by Macmillan Publishing, Inc.
  • Writing That Works by Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson, 3rd Edition.
  • When Words Collide: A Media Writer’s Guide to Grammar and Style, by Lauren Kessler and Duncan McDonald