A

abbreviations and acronyms: Avoid using abbreviations in running text. A few standard abbreviations may be used only when it's customary (a.m. or BCE).

Use periods in abbreviations for all academic degrees and in most two-letter abbreviations (A.B., U.S., a.m., Ms.) Acronyms that appear in full caps do not take periods (NAACP, FAFSA, TIAA-CREF). Spell out acronyms on first reference, unless they are well known, such as NAACP and NCAA. See also academic degrees, addresses, dates and state names.

academic degrees: Use lowercase and spell out degrees mentioned in text: bachelor's degree, bachelor of fine arts; master's degree; doctorate, doctoral degree. Abbreviate degrees appearing after names (Jane Wyley, Ph.D.) Note: Smith confers the A.B., S.B., A.M. and S.M. degrees. Smith's undergraduate degree in biological sciences is considered a bachelor of arts or an A.B.; its graduate degree in biological sciences is the master of science, or S.M.

academic departments: Capitalize only when the full formal name is used (Department of Biological Sciences, biological sciences department). Formal and informal names may be used interchangeably, though audience sensitivity should be exercised. Department names can be checked against the Smith College Web site. See administrative offices on campus.

academic disciplines: Use lowercase for academic subjects, majors and minors, and courses of study—except in cases that include a proper noun. (English language and literature, Afro-American studies, medieval studies). See capitalization.

academic titles: Follow the general rules under titles of people. Exception: Named professorships and full formal titles denoting academic honors are always capitalized, even when following a personal name or standing alone(Miriam Petry, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada; William Allan Oram, Helen Means Professor of English Language and Literature). Capitalize the title "scholar" when it is part of a named scholarship (Rhodes Scholar, an Ada Comstock Scholar). See also emerita.

academic year: See class year, numbers and first-year students.

Ada Comstock Scholars, Ada Comstock Scholars Program: Always capitalized. Indicated by "AC" after names of alumnae (as in Barbara Smith AC or followed by a space and then the class year, if known: Susan Jones AC '92). Avoid using "Adas"; although this reference is fairly common, some consider it demeaning. See nontraditional-aged students.

addresses: In college addresses, state the building before the room (College Hall 5, Neilson Library Browsing Room). Spell out the names of college buildings. Avoid abbreviations in running text. See building names and state names.

administrative offices on campus: Capitalize the full formal names of all administrative offices—which are generally written "Office of..." (Office of Human Resources, Office of the Provost, Office of the Registrar, Office of Student Affairs). Use lowercase for informal references: human resources, registrar's office, provost's office, student affairs office.

Exceptions: The names of the following campus offices should be capitalized in all instances because they are the official designations: Class Deans Office, Community Service Office, Facilities Management, Health Services, Campus Police Department, Student Financial Services. See also academic departments.

admission office: Smith College Office of Admission (note singular)

Advanced Placement, AP

adviser, advisory

Afro-American studies department

age: See numbers.

Ainsworth Gymnasium (building name), Ainsworth gym (the room)

All-America: sports term

all-college meeting

alma mater

alumna (fem. singular), alumnae (fem. plural). Varies according to gender and number. Avoid using "alums." See class year.

Alumnae Gymnasium (houses the College Archives, next to Neilson Library)

and/or: Avoid this construction; use one or the other.

application forms: Use lowercase when referring to forms (admission application, common application form, health services form)

athletics and recreation department; Department of Athletics (note the plural) and Recreation, formerly the Department of Athletics See also sports-related terms.

awards: Names of awards and prizes are capitalized, but some generic terms used with the names are lowercased. (a Nobel Prize winner; the Nobel Prize in literature; a Nobel Prize–winning physicist; the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary).

B

bachelor's degree: Smith awards the A.B. and the S.B.

bias-free and inclusive language
See gender-neutral language, ethnic and national designations and minority.

biological sciences: See academic degrees

black: Lowercase when referring to skin color.

board of trustees (generic); Smith College Board of Trustees (capitalize full name only).

boathouse: Smith College boathouse (one word)

botanic garden, Smith College Botanic Garden (capitalize when used in full)

brand names or trademarks: Substitute a generic term when available (photocopy, tissue). The trademark symbol is unnecessary. Avoid using trademarked names as verbs (terms such as Photoshopped, Xeroxed, Googling and Tweeting can be replaced by photo editing, photocopied, searching and posting).

Brown Fine Arts Center

building names: Capitalize the names of specific buildings, use lowercase for generic terms (Neilson Library, the library). Consult the Smith College map online for accurate names of campus buildings. See also addresses and capitalization.

C

Campus Center: capitalized (This is the formal name for the building.)

Campus Police, Campus Police Department: formerly Public Safety

Campus School

capitalization: Capitalize the full formal names of college departments and offices, course titles, committees, divisions, associations, prizes, programs, institutes, grants, awards, scholarships, buildings and rooms. Use lowercase when the names are shortened or when used as a generic term. (Smith College, the college; Office of Admission, admission office; Smith College Botanic Garden, botanic garden; Ainsworth lounge). When in doubt, use lowercase. Exceptions: Campus Center; Campus Police is always capitalized when referring to the Smith College Campus Police Department.

Lowercase the common noun elements of names in plural uses (the rivers Connecticut and Manhan, Amherst and Mount Holyoke colleges).

See also administrative offices on campus.

catalogue: preferred spelling. Smith College 2012–13 Catalogue is the official title of the publication; do not capitalize “catalogue” in Smith College catalogue (the generic reference).

Centers for Engagement, Learning and Leadership: Center for Community Collaboration; Center for the Environment, Ecological Design and Sustainability; Global Studies Center; Wurtele Center for Work and Life

central check-in, CCI

chair: Avoid using "chairman." See gender-neutral language.

choral groups at Smith: Check the Student Life/Clubs and Organizations Web page for current names

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech: formerly Clarke School for the Deaf. Another name change: Smith College/Clarke Graduate Program in Teacher Education

Class Deans Office

class year: Lowercase when spelled out: class of 1934. When stating name and year of graduation, use space after name and apostrophe with year. (Julia Child '34). References between 1879 and 100 years before the present year should include the entire year (Alice Jones 1892). See also Ada Comstock Scholars.

Sophomore, junior, senior are always lowercased. See also first year and upper class.

commas See punctuation.

Commencement, Commencement Weekend: capitalize when referring to Smith College.

common application form

Community Service Office (formerly Service Organizations of Smith or S.O.S.)

computer and technology terms
Internet address protocol: Use all lowercase letters for Smith e-mail addresses: www.smith.edu. Do not include http:// with Web addresses. Do not italicize URLs.

Proper names of computer hardware, software, networks, systems and languages are capitalized (Entourage, BannerWeb, Google, Twitter). Generic terms are lowercased (word processing, search).

Common computer terms: cyberspace, database, domain name, download, e-mail, home page, Internet, iPod, JPG, log-in (adj), log in (v), Macintosh, online, password, username, real time, server, search engine, spam, URL, virus, Web, Web site, Web page, webcam, webcast

concentrations: use lowercase when citing Smith's academic concentrations (archives concentration, concentration in archives; Buddhist studies)

Copy and Mail Services (formerly Central Services

corporation names: On first reference, use the corporation's full formal name (Ford Motor Company); the shortened name can be used for subsequent references (Ford). Look at the copyright notice at the bottom of the corporation home page for the actual name.

Inc.: Do not use a comma with corporation names (West Plastics Inc.) Exception: Five Colleges, Incorporated.

Counseling Service (part of Health Services)

course work

cross-country (noun and adjective)

cross-cultural

cross-listed (verb)

D

dashes: See punctuation and dates.

dates Use a comma when including the day (Tuesday, September 14, 2004; January 15, 1988) but not with month and year only (January 1988). Do not abbreviate names of days or months in running text. Avoid using a dash with "from" or "between" (incorrect: from May 7-April 14; correct: from May 7 to April 14). It is not necessary to repeat the month in citing a range of dates: May 7–14). Use cardinal numbers (August 7, rather than August 7th). See also "centuries and decades" under numbers listing, as well as eras.

deaf: Describes a person with total hearing loss. For others, use "partial hearing loss" or "partially deaf." Use "hearing-impaired" as an adjective, not a noun.

degrees: See academic degrees.

dean's list

Dining Services

persons with disabilities: preferred over "disabled," "handicapped" or "impaired." (See AP Stylebook entry under "disabled.") The term "accessible" is preferred over "handicap-accessible." Use "wheelchair user" instead of "confined to a wheelchair." Avoid euphemisms like "mentally challenged" or terms that evoke pity, such as "victim," "afflicted" or "suffers from."

Duckett House Special Dining Room

dorm; dormitory: Do not use when referring to Smith campus housing. Smith students live in houses. See house.

dual degree programs

E

eDigest: the regular e-mail for campus news

Early Decision Plans: Early Decision I, Early Decision II (formerly Fall Early Decision, Winter Early Decision)

email: Use as a noun or an adjective, not as a verb. The plural form is "email messages."

emerita (fem., singular); emeritae (fem., plural); emeritus (male, singular); emeriti (male, plural). Lowercase (the professor emerita of  history). Exceptions: Capitalize when used before a name or when it is an official part of a named professorship (Elsie Irwin Sweeney Professor Emeritus of Music). Note that these are honorary designations and do not simply mean “retired.”

eras: CE and BCE—Common Era and Before the Common Era are the preferred terms (considered to be more inclusive than AD and BC). CE, like AD, always precedes the year (CE 500).

ethnic and national designations: Try to use the preferred designations. National-origin identifiers do not require hyphens, even when used as modifiers (Latina/Latino, Polish American newspaper, indigenous students). Use lowercase for "black" and "white."

extension: See telephone numbers.

F

Facilities Management: formerly Physical Plant

faculty: a singular collective noun. Add the word "members" to make it plural.

Faculty Council

Family Weekend (formerly Parents Weekend)

fellow, fellowship: Lowercase except when used with proper names.

festivities: The following Smith celebrations are capitalized: Commencement, Commencement Weekend, Family Weekend, Illumination Night, Junior Brunch, Ivy Day, Last Chapel, Mountain Day, Otelia Cromwell Day, Rally Day, Rally Day convocation, Opening Convocation, Julia Child Day

Field House

fieldwork (but course work)

first-year students: Avoid using the word "freshmen."

fitness center

Five Colleges, Incorporated: All formal references to the title of the consortium should appear with the word "Incorporated" written in full and preceded by a comma. Capitalize anything associated with the Five College Consortium, either officially or unofficially (Five College Department of Dance, Five College Buddhist Studies Certificate, Five College professor, Five College Cooperative Ph.D. Program, Five College interchange, Five College bus service, Five College students). Do not capitalize when referring to the five colleges in general (and not the consortium).

Ford Hall: Smith's building for the sciences and engineering

foreign words and phrases: Italicize words that haven't been incorporated into everyday American usage. (Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary is a good source for determining accepted usage.) When using a foreign term more than once in the same article, second and later appearances should not be italicized.

fundraising, fundraiser: One word in all cases.

G

the Gamut (in the Mendenhall Center for Performing Arts), upper Gamut, lower Gamut

gender-neutral language: Masculine nouns and pronouns are not generic and should not be assumed to include women.

If possible, avoid using gender-specific singular pronouns (he or she, his or her): Consider rewriting sentences to include plural pronouns (they, their) or to eliminate the possessive pronoun altogether.

geographic locations: General compass points and terms derived from them are lowercased if they simply refer to direction or location (western Massachusetts). Regional terms are generally capitalized (a Southern accent, East Coast, the Northeast, Western Hemisphere). General terms are always lowercased (Pioneer Valley, the valley). Capitalize legendary and popular names (Big Apple, Happy Valley). See addresses and state names.

Gold Key guide

grade point average, GPA

Graham Hall (the lecture hall in Hillyer Hall)

Grécourt Bookshop, Grécourt Gates

Grécourt Gate Smith’s online news site; the Gate

gymnasiums (preferred over "gymnasia")

H

Health Services

hearing impaired: use as an adjective, not as a noun.

Helen Hills Hills Chapel (No, it's not a misprint.)

Hillyer Art Library, Hillyer lounge

historic, historical: Preceded by the article "a" (not "an")

historical periods: A descriptive designation of a period is usually lowercased (baroque, colonial period, nuclear age). Exception: "Renaissance" is usually capitalized to avoid ambiguity. Names of prehistoric periods are generally capitalized: Ice Age, Bronze Age. Consult the "historical periods and events" entry in the AP Stylebook.

holidays: Veterans Day (no apostrophe), Mother's Day. See also festivities.

honorary degree, honorary doctorate, honors

honors thesis

honorary degree

hot line

house: Smith-specific term for student residence building. Not dorm.

house system

hyphen: See punctuation entry.

I

ID, IDs, Smith ID: Often doubles as OneCard

Illumination Night

independent study

Indoor Track and Tennis Facility,  ITT

Insight: online journal of scholarship and research

Information Technology Services, ITS

interdepartmental

international students: Use "international" when referring to people (avoid the term "foreign").

Office of International Students and Scholars: formerly "Office of International Students"

Internet

intersession, interterm

italics: See titles or foreign words.

ITT: Indoor Track and Tennis Facility

ITS: Information Technology Services

Ivy Day, Ivy Day Awards Convocation (formerly Last Chapel)

J

Jean Picker Semester-in-Washington Program

John M. Greene Hall, Greene Hall, JMG

judicial board or Student Government Judicial Board, SGA Judicial Board

Junior Ushers

K

Kosher Kitchen, Kosher Co-op Kitchen, kosher food

L

Lazarus Center for Career Development (formerly Career Development Office); Lazarus Center.

Leo Weinstein Auditorium

Lyman Conservatory, the conservatory

M

major and minor: Lowercase these terms and the names of academic fields (minoring in English language and literature, a Jewish studies major).

master's degrees: Smith confers the A.M. and the S.M.

Department of Mathematics and Statistics: formerly the Department of Mathematics

McConnell roof observatory

medalist: winner of the Smith College Medal

Mendenhall Center for the Performing Arts; the performing arts center

Mendenhall Fellows

minority: Use specific references when possible (Asian American, Mexican American) or "person of color" or "women of color" if specifics are not known. Try to avoid the word "minority" and focus instead on diversity. See ethnic and national designations entry.

Mortimer Rare Book Room

Mount Holyoke: not Mt. Holyoke

Mountain Day

Museum of Art: Capitalize when referring to the Smith College museum.

Mwangi Cultural Center

N

names of people: Use last name only on second and subsequent references. Avoid courtesy titles: Dr., Ms, Mrs., or Mr. Use Jr., II, and so on with complete names only and eliminate the preceding comma.

NCAA divisions: See sports-related terms.

Neilson Library Browsing Room

Neilson, William Allan (not Allen)

newspaper and magazine titles: Capitalize the name and set in italics, exactly as it appears in the masthead or on their Web site, including punctuation and preceding article  (The New York Times, The Albany Times-Union, Time magazine). See titles.

nontraditional-aged students, students of nontraditional college age. Use when referring to Ada Comstock Scholars; avoid saying "older students."

numbers: Spell out numbers one through nine, use figures for 10 and above, even when this means mixing words and numerals in the same sentence. This rule holds for ordinals as well.

Spell out numbers when they appear as the first word of the sentence or recast the sentence (preferred). Use commas in numbers of four or more digits (2,367), except in dates, addresses and page numbers. Large rounded numbers should be spelled out (nearly a thousand people; 2 million residents).

academic year (2012–13) When citing academic years, use an en dash (which, when typeset, is slightly wider than a hyphen) and do not repeat the century.

age: always use numerals (a 5 year old, the 5-year-old boy)

fractions: Use figures for all fractions larger than one; spell out for less than one   (1-1/2; two-thirds).

centuries and decades: Use an s without an apostrophe to indicate spans of decades (1930s, the ’30s) or centuries (1800s);  hyphenate adjectival forms of centuries (18th-century architecture). (See also eras.)

money: Use numerals, not words, for all dollar amounts, and eliminate zeros when possible  ($6 million drive, $40 million)

percentages: Always use numerals for percentages and spell out the word (7 percent)

telephone numbers: Use parentheses with area code: (413) 584-2700. See also telephone numbers entry.

temperature: Always use numerals, drop plus and minus signs, and spell out “degrees” (minus 20 degrees, 7 degrees below zero).

See also addresses, dates, eras, class year, and time of day entries.

O

Office of the Dean of the College

OneCard

online

Opening Convocation

orientation, orientation week, orientation programs (formerly preorientation programs)

P

pass/fail grading option

Picker Engineering Program, the Picker program

plurals: Do not use an apostrophe for plurals of acronyms: SATs, DVDs. See capitalization for plurals of common noun elements used with proper names.

No apostrophe is necessary when pluralizing numbers or letters, as in letter grades (the 1930s, two Bs and a C-); however, use an apostrophe with the letter grade A to avoid misreading (two A's).

Latin plurals: addenda, analyses, consortia, criteria, curricula, data, media, millennia, theses, syllabi, symposia

Anglicized plurals: appendixes, colloquiums, gymnasiums, indexes, memorandums

Poetry Center

possessives: Singular proper names ending in s take only an apostrophe: Morris' designs, Williams' speech.

Praxis internship, Praxis program

prefixes: Compounds formed with prefixes are normally closed. For further information, consult Webster's Dictionary, the AP Stylebook or the Chicago Manual of Style (15th edition, page 307). Examples: multicultural, nonprofit, prelaw, prehealth, premedical, postdoctoral, postseason

President's House

professor: In running text, all faculty members at any rank may be referred to as "professor."

professorships, named: Full titles of named professorships are always capitalized, even when they appear after the professor's name.

provost’s office, Office of the Provost

punctuation: This entry addresses frequently asked questions and is not meant to be comprehensive. See "A Guide to Punctuation" chapter in the AP Stylebook for a more complete explanation.

apostrophe: See possessives, holidays and plurals.

commas
series Use for words in series of three or more after every item except the last and next to the last (performances on Thursday, Friday and Saturday). Exception: Use a comma after the next to the last item if it helps avoid ambiguity. (Examples: undergraduate, business, and graduate and professional schools; the required courses are Elementary German, Reading German, and Conversation and Composition.) When some items in the list contain internal commas, semicolons should be used between the items (and before the final conjunction as well).

restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses A phrase that is restrictive (essential to the meaning of the sentence) should not be set off by commas. A nonrestrictive clause, however, should be enclosed in commas or, if at the end of a sentence, preceded by a comma. See that/which entry.

dashes
For a detailed explanation of the different usages of em- and en-dashes and hyphens, see the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, sections 6.80 to 6.94.

ellipses
Used only to indicate missing words or phrases in quotations.

hyphens
Hyphenate compound modifiers when they precede nouns (an awe-inspiring sight, a well-prepared meal); leave open when they follow nouns (the sight was awe inspiring, the meal was well prepared). See also prefixes entry.

Do not hyphenate well-established compound modifiers (a high school play, the civil rights movement).

Do not hyphenate modifiers containing an adverb ending in "ly" (mildly irritating fellow, a highly complex question).

Suspensive hyphenation: For phrasal adjectives sharing a common element. Example: He received a 10- to 20-year sentence.

quotation marks
Periods and commas generally go inside closing quotation marks. Colons, semicolons, question marks and exclamation points follow closing quotation marks unless a question mark or an exclamation mark is part of the quoted matter.

Q

Quad, Quad I, Quad II

R

re-create (to create again), recreate (to take recreation)

registrar’s office, Office of the Registrar

Regular Decision Plan; Regular Decision

religious titles: the Rev. Richard Phillips (include the article the before the title; not Rev. or Reverend Phillips (consult AP Stylebook—this gets complicated). Use last name only in subsequent references.

Renaissance: See historical periods entry.

Resource Center for Gender and Sexuality in Wesley House

résumé

riding stable, Smith College Riding Stable

room and board: Use "housing and meals" when referring to Smith.

rooms: Capitalize official room names on campus (Neilson Library Browsing Room) but use lowercase when they are simply locations or informal names (Ainsworth lounge). When in doubt, use lowercase.

S

satisfactory/unsatisfactory grading option; S/U grading option (on second reference only)

scholar-athlete

School for Social Work, SSW (on second reference)

Scott Gymnasium; Scott gym

seasons: Use lowercase (fall, spring, winter).

semesters: Use lowercase (fall semester, first semester, interterm)

SGA Cabinet, SGA office, SGA Senate

Smith College Conference Center (formerly the Smith College Club)

senior class gift, senior class speaker

Seven Sisters (adjective or noun)

Sherrerd Prizes; Kathleen Compton Sherrerd ’54 and John J. F. Sherrerd Prizes for Distinguished Teaching

Smith College health insurance program

Smith College Archives, College Archives, the archives

Smith College Medal

The Smith Fund: formerly the Smith Alumnae and Parents Fund

Smith Scholars Program; Smith Scholars

Sophomore Push; Sophomore Push Committee

Special Studies: Capitalize when referring to Smith Special Studies courses.

sports-related terms: All-American (n. or adj.); Easterns, nationals; NCAA divisions use roman numerals: Division III (Smith's teams are Division III teams); Region I; regionals; varsity eight (crew). See AP Stylebook for a comprehensive listing.

Staff Council

state names: Spell out in text, except when used in conjunction with a city, county or town (e.g., She was born in Massachusetts in 1960; She was born in Northampton, Mass., in 1960). Set off state names with commas before and after when used after a city in a sentence. Note: Use standard abbreviations in text; use the two-letter postal abbreviations only with full addresses and ZIP codes.

Stoddard Hall auditorium

Student Events Committee (formerly the Rec Council)

Student Financial Services (formerly Office of Financial Aid)

student activities fee

Student Government Association (SGA), SGA Cabinet, SGA Judicial Board

Study Abroad Programs (in Florence, Geneva, Hamburg and Paris); formerly called Junior Year Abroad

study-abroad (adj.)

T

telephone numbers: Use parentheses with area codes: (413) 584-2711. (Note: This differs from the AP Style Guide.) Whenever possible, list the direct number and avoid listing a separate extension number. For example, use “(413) 585-2182” instead of “(413) 585-2700, extension 2182.”

that/which: Use "that" for restrictive clauses and "which" for nonrestrictive. See the "commas" entry in the punctuation section.

theatre: (at Smith) Department of Theatre, theatre department. Use the "theater" spelling in generic use, unless the specific organization uses the "-re" spelling.

TIAA-CREF retirement plan

time of day: Use numbers, eliminate unnecessary zeros, use a.m. and p.m. (lowercase with periods). Use "midnight" and "noon" (lowercase) instead of 12 a.m. and p.m. (Examples: 8-11:30 a.m.; 7 a.m. to midnight; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.) Spell out durations used in running text. (Example: An eight-hour workday. The class meets at two o'clock.)

titles

of works
Italicize titles of books, magazines, newspapers, legal cases, films, full-length plays and paintings. See newspaper and magazine titles and Smith publications.

Enclose in quotation marks the titles of individual lectures (but not the name of the lecture series), short stories, poems, songs, booklets, fliers and television series (unless specific episodes are mentioned, then series title is in italics, episode in quotations). Consult AP Stylebook under "composition titles" for more information.

music
Use quotation marks for song titles; use italics for citing the full work or for long musical compositions. Use capitalization only (and no additional treatment) for generic descriptions (Concerto for Orchestra, Piano Sonata). Use lowercase abbreviations for opus and number (String Quartet no. 5; Sonata in E-flat, op. 31, no. 3). Capitalize Major and Minor if they appear as part of a title (Fantasy in C Minor).  See Chicago Manual (15th ed.), pages 375–76, for more detail.

course titles should be set in Roman with initial caps. See capitalization.

of people
Capitalize official titles that appear before names (President Carol T. Christ, Dean of the College Maureen A. Mahoney, Associate Professor June Brown). Lowercase informal descriptive titles and occupational titles used before names (history professor Ellen Richter, department chair Anne Miller). Use lowercase for titles appearing after names (Carol T. Christ, president of the college). Use the Smith College catalogue to confirm the titles of faculty members. Exceptions: Titles in display (in mastheads and in other headings) or in formal usage (programs and announcements) are often capitalized without regard to these rules. See also academic titles, emerita and religious titles.

Move titles to follow names whenever possible (Carol T. Christ, president of Smith College; Karen Green, assistant professor of theatre).

Use lowercase for titles standing alone (the president, the dean, the director of graduate study). "Junior Usher" is an exception.

T-shirt

transgender: adjective and noun. (transgender students)

trustees, Smith College Board of Trustees, board of trustees

U

United States: spell out when used as a noun, abbreviate the adjectival form (U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun, U.S. currency, an ally of the United States).

university and college names: For universities with several campuses, try to follow the preferred punctuation for each campus (see individual Web sites). For example, University of Massachusetts Amherst; University of California, Berkeley; University at Albany, State University of New York. Use shortened names (UMass, MIT) only in informal references. Exception: Mount Holyoke College: do not abbreviate "Mount."

upper-class students/upperclassmen: Avoid these terms. When practical, replace with "returning students" or "upper-level students." Consider using "sophomores, juniors and seniors," if it doesn't seem too wordy.

V

vespers, Christmas vespers

Visiting Year at Smith (not Visiting Student Program)

W

Web: Capitalize when using alone as a separate term: Web page; Lowercase when combined with another word: website, webcam.

Web addresses: Cite only the name of the server in Web addresses. Begin the URL with "www..." (www.smith.edu). It is not necessary to use the protocol "http:...."

William Allan Neilson Library (Note the spelling of the middle name.)

Program for the Study of Women and Gender: formerly women's studies

white: Lowercase when referring to skin color.

work-study, Federal Work-Study Program, work-study students

Z

ZIP code