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Editorial Guidelines Delta State
University's SACS Accreditation Project Delta State University's SACS Editorial Committee is charged with ensuring that reports are clear, concise, and standardized. All reports will be edited for style after they are submitted, but the Editorial Committee may be consulted in the early stages of the writing process as well. Committee members are Carolyn Elkins, Beverly Moon, and Elizabeth Sarcone, and the committee chair is Bill Spencer (846-4083; bspencer@deltastate.edu). As standard reference works, the American Heritage dictionary and Hodges' Harbrace Handbook are recommended. In matters of documentation, use MLA (Modern Language Association) style, not APA style. General Stylistic Goals
Website Style Considerations Because reports will be posted to a website, they should be designed to be easily viewed on a computer screen.
Format The format for headings and the chart for documenting compliance has already been set up by the DSU webmaster at the committee report site on the web. Before composing reports, please schedule a template-use session with the DSU webmaster. Thereafter, consult DSU's "SACS Committee Help" file for instructions on how to compose the report, including cutting and pasting. Do not insert page numbers or page breaks.
Spacing and Subheadings In general, the text of reports should be single spaced. Exceptions: Double space before and after bulleted or numbered lists. Double space also before and after all headings and any needed subheadings. Keep subheadings flush left, and capitalize the first letter of important words in the subheading. Submissions to the Editorial Committee Submit reports both on paper and on disk to Bill Spencer, Division of Languages & Literature, Kethley 219-C. Please clearly identify each report with the name of the SACS committee chair.
Usage The University's name The first instance of the University's name in any report (and, in longer reports, the first instance in each major section) should be written in full as Delta State University. All subsequent references should be given simply as DSU (no periods) or as the University. Department and division names The first instance of a department's or division's name in any report should be written formally and in full: the Department of History, the Division of Languages and Literature. Subsequent references should refer to the Department (or the Division) or to History, but not to the History Department. Course names For the first reference to a course, give the full course name followed by the course designation in parentheses: Sociology of Education (SOC 420). For subsequent references, use the course designation. Titles of people Before names drop such titles as "Dr." and "Ms." Write "Richard S. Myers" or "Richard S. Myers, Dean" or "Dean Richard S. Myers, " but not "Dr. Richard S. Myers." For subsequent references, use only the last name. Titles of works For titles of books and articles, use MLA (Modern Language Association) style and not APA style. Capitalize the first word and all important words in titles. Italicize book titles and the official titles of university-related documents (e.g. DSU Faculty and Staff Handbook; DSU Bulletin, 2002-2004). Italicize the date when it is a necessary part of the title. Place article titles within quotation marks. Nonsexist language Recast generic statements to avoid gender-specific pronouns. Instead of "Each student must submit his application," write, "Students must submit their applications" or "Each student must submit an application." If a generic personal pronoun is unavoidable, use "he or she," not "he," "she/he," or "(s)he." Chairs Use "chair" instead of "chairman," "chairwoman," or "chairperson." Degrees Refer to degrees in general as "doctoral," master's," or "bachelor's." Use abbreviations for degrees and certifications following names: John Zeko, PhD, CPA. Abbreviations In general abbreviate only words that would be read aloud as acronyms or abbreviations. Abbreviate SACS and ROTC but not MS or Sept. (if the latter are meant to be read as "Mississippi" and "September"). Exceptions are Jr. and Sr. Omit periods in abbreviations of names of institutions and degree titles: DSU, BA, PhD, MBA. Capitalization Capitalize titles of official units of the University and of University officials. Note the following:
Numbers Write out numbers that begin sentences. Use numerals for numbers that require more than two words to spell out, and use numerals when the text contains several numbers close together. Rounded dollar sums are written as $13.4 million or $2 billion (not two billion dollars). Fractions are spelled out when standing alone (one half) but expressed in figures when preceded by an integer (2½), or when possible you may use decimals (2.5). Dates Express dates as September 1, 2002. Use 1992-93, not 1992-1993 or 1992-'93, to represent the academic year. Commas in a series Please include a comma before the word and in a series of three or more items: the history, theory, and practice of editing. (Note the comma following theory.) Quotation marks with other punctuation Commas and periods should be placed inside quotation marks; semicolons and colons should be placed outside quotation marks. Hyphens Consult an up-to-date dictionary and section 18g in the Harbrace Handbook for hyphenation of words. The following are standard:
Spacing Please space twice after periods and question marks at the end of a sentence. Documentation Avoid the use of footnotes and endnotes. Document sources in the text within parentheses in current MLA style. When documenting page numbers of sources in the template chart, use p. for one page and pp. for more than one page: p. 3, pp. 5-9. List documents in the template chart in the same order in which they appear in the report.
These guidelines have been adapted from DSU's 1993 SACS Self-Study Format and Style Guide, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington's Self-Study Guidelines, and from Eastern Tennessee State University's SACS Accreditation Review Project Editorial Guidelines. |