Editorial Style Guide

To ensure all University communications convey a concise, unified message, the Office of Communications and Brand Marketing has developed guidelines to assist you in the creation of brochures, fliers, posters, postcards, web pages and other communications.

The Office of Communications and Brand Marketing uses the Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law (AP) as its source for appropriate style, usage and punctuation. In addition to abiding by AP standards, there are additional standards included in this guide that are unique to 不良研究所. When a discrepancy occurs between 不良研究所 style and AP style or that of any other reference, 不良研究所 style takes precedence.

The Office of Communications and Brand Marketing is a resource for all University personnel. Writing, editing, proofreading services and general consultation for questions on these topics are available through this department.

This guide is not a complete list of all matters of style and usage, but rather a compilation of the most frequently observed challenges in preparing 不良研究所 content.

It is important to consistently apply the rules in this guide to ensure the highest quality content possible in representing the University. For answers to additional questions about style and usage, consult the latest edition of the Associated Press Stylebook, published by The Associated Press, or contact the Office of Communications and Brand Marketing at (210) 829-6001 or pr@uiwtx.edu.

University Name and Identifiers

The University should always be identified as “不良研究所” or “不良研究所”.

  • Either the complete name, 不良研究所, or the acronym 不良研究所 may be used to identify the University.
  • Do not use periods or spaces between the letters of the 不良研究所 acronym.
  • Lowercase “the” in front of the full name in running copy (ex: At the 不良研究所, you’ll thrive).
  • Avoid using “the” in front of the name in lists.
  • Always lowercase “of the” in the full version, 不良研究所.
  • Incarnate Word may be used, but never in a first reference.

Examples of incorrect University names:

  • Incorrect: University of Incarnate Word is incorrect.
  • Incorrect: Incarnate Word University is incorrect.
  • Incorrect: Incarnate Word College is incorrect. 不良研究所 became a university in 1996.

University vs. university

  • Capitalize University when included in the full proper name of the institution (不良研究所).
  • Capitalize University when used in reference to or in place of the 不良研究所 (The University’s commencement ceremonies...).
  • All other uses of university should be lowercase.

Examples of correct usage of University and university:

  • Correct: A new degree program was introduced at the 不良研究所.
  • Correct: A new degree program was introduced at the University.
  • Correct: New degree programs are regularly introduced at colleges and universities.

Mission vs. mission

  • Capitalize Mission when referencing the Mission of the 不良研究所.
  • Lower case mission when referencing the mission for 不良研究所 colleges, programs or other universities or any other uses of the word mission.

Examples of the correct usage of Mission and mission:

  • Correct: The Mission of the 不良研究所 is derived from the mission of our founding congregation, the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word.
  • Correct: The mission of 不良研究所 Residence Life and Housing Operations creates a safe and inclusive community, provides supportive services and cultivates holistic growth.

Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word (CCVI)

Our founding congregation is the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word. This name cannot be shortened to “Sisters of Charity” as that is the name of a different congregation. Do not shorten or change the name of the founding congregation.

不良研究所 Official Taglines and Registered Word Marks

Current marketing tagline

The tagline for the current advertising campaign is “Your Journey. Our Mission.” The tagline communicates the sentiment that in fulfillment of the University’s Mission, the greater 不良研究所 community is dedicated to assisting students on their unique higher education journeys. The University updates its advertising campaign regularly. University departments may choose to use the current advertising tagline in their materials to further enhance the consistent branding image of the University.

Word Marks

The following are trademarked word marks for the 不良研究所. The appropriate registered or trademark by usage symbol must accompany the word mark when standing alone. The registered and trademark by usage marks should appear in superscript when possible. A particular font is not required unless an actual logo is used in which case the appropriate guidelines must be followed. When used in the body of a correspondence or paragraph of a brochure or like material, the symbol is not required.

Indicated by the registered ® symbol:

  • 不良研究所®
  • 不良研究所®
  • Brainpower®
  • Brainpower Connection®
  • The Word Online®

Indicated by the trademark by usage ™ symbol:

  • Incarnate Word™
  • Incarnate Word Cardinals™
  • Cardinals™
  • The Cutting Edge™ Fiesta® Fashion Show

Colleges, Schools and Departments

The formal names of the colleges and schools of the 不良研究所 are presented as the full name capitalized with no ampersand in place of “and”:

  • College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
  • Dreeben School of Education
  • School of Professional Studies
  • Feik School of Pharmacy
  • H-E-B School of Business and Administration
  • Ila Faye Miller School of Nursing and Health Professions
  • Rosenberg School of Optometry
  • Office of Research and Graduate Studies
  • School of Mathematics, Science and Engineering
  • School of Media and Design
  • School of Osteopathic Medicine
  • School of Rehabilitation Sciences

After initial formal reference, acronyms may be used for the remainder of the text. Always follow the full, formal name with the acronym in parentheses upon first reference.

The following are the correct acronyms for each school:

  • College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (CHASS)
  • Dreeben School of Education (DSE)
  • Feik School of Pharmacy (FSOP)
  • H-E-B School of Business and Administration (HEBSBA)
  • Rosenberg School of Optometry (RSO) or (不良研究所RSO)
  • School of Mathematics, Science and Engineering (MSE)
  • School of Media and Design (SMD)
  • Ila Faye Miller School of Nursing and Health Professions (SNHP)
  • School of Osteopathic Medicine (SOM) or (不良研究所SOM)
  • School of Rehabilitation Sciences (SRS)
  • School of Professional Studies (SPS)

Acronyms may be used on the first reference for internally distributed materials only.

Additional Acceptable Acronyms

Other acceptable acronyms include: (use with no periods; define at first use)

  • Mexico - Centro Universitario Incarnate Word = CIW
  • Incarnate Word High School = IWHS
  • St. Anthony Catholic High School = SACHS
  • English Language Services = ELS
  • Reserve Officer Training Corps = ROTC
  • Science & Mathematics Alliance for Recruiting & Retaining Teachers = SMARRT
  • Learning Assistance Center = LAC
  • Ettling Center for Civic Leadership & Sustainability = ECCLS
  • Institute of World Cultures = IWC
  • Center for Medical Tourism Research = CMTR
  • Hispanic Serving Institution = HSI

Department Names

When referring to departments and offices within the University, either the full name or shortened version are acceptable. Generally, capitalize only when using the full, proper name of the department. When referring to a department with shortened name, use lowercase; e.g.:

  • Correct: Ms. Martin of the Office of Communications and Brand Marketing will attend the meeting.
  • Correct: Ms. Martin of communications and marketing will attend.
  • Correct: She teaches in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice.
  • Correct: He is a nursing student.

Proper Names

Individual Names

  • Always write the full name (or two initials with surname) of a person the first time they appear in the body of the text.
  • After referring to an individual by full name, e.g., John Smith, the second reference should be to surname only, e.g., Smith. It may be acceptable to refer to the subject by first name if there is more than one individual referenced with the same surname.
  • Maintain courtesy titles after first reference when referring to persons of religious orders, e.g., Fr. Dymowski, Sr. Coughlin, etc.

Titles

Courtesy titles (Mr., Mrs. etc.) should be used in correspondence only.

Do not use a courtesy title and an abbreviated reference indicating academic degree in the same line.

  • Correct: Dr. John Doe or John Doe, PhD
  • Incorrect: Dr. John Doe, PhD

When shortening titles of religious designation, the following are correct:

  • Correct: Sister Martha Marie to Sr. Martha Marie or Sr. Martha Marie, CCVI
  • Correct: Father Michael Baker to Fr. Michael Baker
  • Correct: Monsignor Peter Gallagher to Msgr. Peter Gallagher

Capitalize titles when they precede a name. Do not capitalize a title when it follows a name or stands alone; e.g.,

  • Correct: Director of Public Affairs John Smith attended the conference.
  • Correct: John Smith, director of Public Affairs, attended the conference.
  • Correct: The director of Public Affairs will attend the conference.

When referring to faculty of 不良研究所's schools, use the full name of the school if space allows, or the area of academic instruction before or after the person's name.

  • Correct: Dr. John Doe, professor in the Dreeben School of Education, presents …
  • Correct: Dreeben School of Education Professor Dr. John Doe, presents …
  • Correct: Dr. John Doe, professor of Religious Studies, presents …
  • Correct: Professor of Religious Studies Dr. John Doe presents … (Capitalize areas of instruction when preceding the name)

When referring to a title with a national reference, always capitalize the descriptive name.

  • Correct: Dr. Ann White, professor of French studies, taught the class.
  • Correct: Professor of English Jane Brown lectured at a recent seminar.

When the abbreviated degree, including licenses, follow a name that stands alone, such as in a list, periods should not be used, e.g., Jane Doe, PhD. Multiple degrees and licenses should be listed in chronological order from earliest to most recent degree or license earned. It is optional to list multiple degrees or just the terminal degree. Alumni of 不良研究所 should be listed with the degree and grad year for each degree earned at 不良研究所, e.g., Jane Doe, BS ’08, MS ’10.

Faculty

The term “faculty” refers to the entire instructional staff. It requires the use of a singular verb. An individual should be called a faculty member.

Alumni

  • alumnus: male singular
  • alumni: male plural or combined male and female plural
  • alumna: female singular
  • alumnae: female plural

Academic Degrees

Academic degrees may be spelled out using initial caps or abbreviated without periods, e.g.:

  • Correct: Bachelor of Science or BS
  • Correct: Master of Science or MS
  • Correct: Bachelor of Fine Arts or BFA

Include periods for Ph.D. and similar compounds unless directly following a name, e.g.:

  • Correct: Doctor of Philosophy or Ph.D.
  • Correct: Master of Education or M.Ed.
  • Correct: Doctor of Pharmacy or Pharm.D.
  • Correct: John Smith, PhD

When the abbreviated degree, including licenses, directly follows a name, periods should not be used, e.g.:

  • Correct: John Doe, BA ’80, MEd ’92, PhD ’03

Multiple degrees and licenses should be listed in chronological order from earliest to most recent degree or license earned, e.g.:

  • Correct: John Doe, BS ’80, MS ’92, PharmD ’03

Use an apostrophe in bachelor’s and master’s, etc. (as possessive), but not in Bachelor of Arts or Master of Science (not possessive). Associate degree is not possessive.

Formal names of degrees are capitalized. Informal references to degrees are not capitalized.

  • Correct: She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the 不良研究所. Correct: She earned a bachelor’s degree from the 不良研究所.

When listing degrees with alumni names: the preferred order is capitalized degree abbreviation, year (abbreviated with apostrophe), discipline (if listed, lowercase unless a national reference); e.g.:

Correct: Jacob Dougherty, BA ’95, history Correct: Jacob Dougherty, BA ’95, English

  • Do not place a comma between the year and degree.
  • Do place a comma between the degree and discipline.

The use of parentheses around degree information is optional.

Academic Programs

Capitalize formal titles of academic programs/majors, course titles (including Capstone) and co-curricular programs. The word program should not be capitalized unless part of the formal title; e.g.:

  • Correct: The Master of Business Administration program
  • Correct: Teacher Education Program
  • Correct: In 不良研究所’s Master of Business Administration program, Financial Management is a required course.

Semester Designation

Semester designations should be capitalized only when referring to a specific year unless the semester and year are separated by “of”; e.g.:

  • Correct: The seminar course was offered only in the Fall 2023 term.
  • Correct: The seminar course is offered each spring semester.
  • Correct: The seminar course was offered in the spring of 2023.

Time/Date

When writing times and dates, use the following guidelines:

  • Use numerals when listing a time; 3 p.m., 3:30 p.m.
  • Include a.m. and p.m. notation with periods in lowercase letters.
    • Avoid the redundant: 6 a.m. in the morning or 3 p.m. in the afternoon.
  • Spell out noon and midnight. Do not capitalize.
    • Avoid the redundant: 12 noon or 12 midnight
  • Abbreviate these months when used with a specific date: January (Jan.), February (Feb.), August (Aug.), September (Sept.), October (Oct.), November (Nov.), December (Dec.) unless used in a formal invitation;
  • Always spell out March, April, May, June and July in all references.
  • Always spell out the month if it stands alone in running text.
    • Correct: The semester begins in late August.
    • Incorrect: The semester beings in late Aug.

When writing dates, use numerals only. Do not use superscript ordinals (st, nd, rd, or th); e.g.:

Correct: The event is scheduled for Feb. 1.

Incorrect: The event is scheduled for Feb. 1st.

Numbers

Spell out numbers one through nine. Use numerals for numbers 10 and above.

Use figures within a series if more than one number is greater than 10.

Example: 22 hours, 19 minutes, 6 seconds; 12 hats, 5 purses, and 16 pairs of shoes

The preferred format for phone numbers is with the area code set off by parentheses; e.g.: (210) 829-6000.

Always use numerals when referring to age.

Example: 3-year-old Annie takes ballet; Annie, 3, takes ballet.

When using numerals with suffixes (never with dates), always place the suffix in superscript format; e.g. 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.

Do not begin a sentence with numerals; instead spell out the number or rephrase the sentence.

Do not add a numeral in parentheses after it is written in words; e.g., three copies, not three (3) copies.

Other Abbreviations

  • Use grade-point average with a hyphen or GPA in caps without periods.
  • To identify a specific course, use the official course code; e.g., ENGL 101 Composition

When Not to Abbreviate

Do not abbreviate:

  • Names of countries other than United States of America.
    • March, April, May, June and July in any reference.
  • Christmas (do not use “Xmas”).
  • The name of an organization the first time it is used. Spell out the name and put the acronym in parentheses. If the term appears only once, do not add the acronym.
  • The word percent: spell out the word percent, but in tabular, scientific, technical or statistical copy, use the symbol %.
  • Assistant and associate when used in a title.

Oxford Comma

不良研究所 adheres to the AP Style rules for comma use. In general, AP style does not use the Oxford comma (also known as the serial comma). However, the AP style guide does recommend using it when it's necessary to avoid ambiguity or confusion in a sentence. In simple lists, the Oxford comma is omitted before the conjunction (usually "and" or "or"). For further details regarding comma use please reference the AP Stylebook.

不良研究所 Location Names

The proper names for the locations across 不良研究所 campuses are:

  • AT&T Science Center
  • Agnese/Sosa Residence Hall
  • Ancira Parking Tower
  • Athletics Complex
  • Barshop Natatorium
  • Bernard O’Halloran Fountain
  • Bonilla Science Hall
  • Bowden Eye Care and Health Center
  • Buckley Courtyard
  • Buckley-Mitchell Advancement Center
  • Cardinal Village/ELS Offices
  • Carillon Plaza
  • Centro Universitario Incarnate Word
  • Cervera Wellness Center
  • Chapel of the Incarnate Word
  • Cheever Theatre/Coates Theatre
  • Clement Hall
  • Columkille Administration Building
  • Diane Bennack Concert Hall
  • Dubuis Residence Hall and Lawn
  • European Study Center Strasbourg
  • Everett Lecture Hall
  • Feik School of Pharmacy
  • Founders Hall
  • Frank Nursing Building
  • Friendship Garden
  • Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium
  • Gayle and Tom Benson Fieldhouse
  • Gorman Center
  • Goretti Zehr Lecture Hall
  • Gorman-Mitchell Room
  • Grossman International Conference Center
  • Halligan-Ibbs Theatre/Dance Center
  • Hillside
  • Joeris Residence Hall
  • Joyce Design and Technology Center
  • Kelso Art Center
  • Luella Bennack Music Center
  • Mabry Tennis Center
  • Mathematics, Science and Engineering
  • Mabee Library
  • McCombs Center
  • McCombs Residence Hall
  • McCombs Center Rosenberg Sky Room
  • McCracken House
  • McDermott Center
  • Mission Plaza
  • Northwest Center
  • Our Lady's Chapel
  • Professional Golf Management Facility
  • Saidoff Center
  • Rosenberg School of Optometry
  • School of Osteopathic Medicine
    • Bldg. 1
    • Bldg. 2
    • Bldg. 3
    • Bldg. 4 or Eduardo Caballero M.D. Building
  • School of Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Seddon Recital Hall
  • Semmes Gallery
  • Slattery Leadership Center
  • Skyview Residence Hall
  • H-E-B Softball Field
  • Solar House
  • St. Joseph's Hall
  • Student Gallery
  • Student Engagement Center
  • Sullivan Field
  • Sullivan Sculpture Studio
  • 不良研究所 Eye Institute
  • Village of Avoca Apartments
  • Watson Lofts