About the Style Guide
Table of Contents
Abbreviations and Acronyms
Addresses
Capitalization
Copyright
CU Names
Dates
Dictionaries
Graphic Standards
Inclusive Writing
Letter Format
Lists
Names and Titles
Nondiscrimination Statements
Numbers
Proofreader's and Editor's Symbols
Punctuation
Reference Sources
Tricky Grammar and Language Use
Word List
World Wide Web Style
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Inclusive Writing
"The Boulder campus is committed to achieving diversity and equity not just because it's the right thing to do for underrepresented populationsbut because it is fundamental to our central educational mission. We strongly believe that all studentsminority and majoritybenefit from an education enriched by a diversity of ideas, thoughts, and perspectives. Clearly, the quality of learning is enhanced by a campus climate of inclusion, understanding, and appreciation of the full range of human experience." Diversity and Equity: A Blueprint for Action, July 1999
In General
Careful writers try to communicate in a manner that does not exclude particular
individuals or groups. At the same time, they try to avoid getting trapped
in euphemisms and the ever-changing preferences of various "politically
correct" factionsboth liberal and conservative. It's a balancing act, the basic premise of which is to treat people as individuals who are equal.
Here are some guidelines for appropriate references to members of distinctive
groups.
Sex and Gender
Avoid the awkward s/he and his/her. The easiest way to write
copy that applies equally to men and women is to use plurals. If the singular
must be used, use both pronouns, joined by a conjunction. (For guidelines
on when to use sex and when to use gender, see the Word
List.)
To be academically successful, students need to do more than attend classes
regularly; they also need to practice good study skills, take advantage
of faculty office hours, and get sufficient sleep.
If a student is ill, she or he should notify the appropriate professors
immediately.
Another alternative, when its use is appropriate, is the second person:
You will need to purchase your campus parking permit during the first week of the new semester.
According to the senior lexicographer at Houghton Mifflin, commenting
in Copy Editor newsletter, their is becoming more established
and accepted as both a singular and a plural pronoun. In part, this usage
derives from attempts to make writing nonsexist. Most professional writers,
however, reserve their as a plural pronoun and rewrite copy to
avoid using it as a singular pronoun. Because we write for an institution
of higher education, we recommend using their only as a plural
pronoun until common, published usage has changed significantly.
Age
In written materials intended for a general audience, avoid references that
make assumptions about age-related abilities or that assume all college
and university students are between the ages of 18 and 22.
Disability
When writing about individuals with disabilities, use "person first" language;
i.e., person who uses a wheelchair. Similarly, blind students would
be preferable to the blind. Do not cap blind, deaf,or any
other term relating to people with disabilities.
Special arrangements may be made for students with hearing, vision, learning,
or physical disabilities.
Parking for persons with disabilities should be referred to as disability
parking, not handicap parking.
Race and Ethnicity
Current practice and preference is to style the names of non-European Americans
without hyphens. Although there are many more distinct ethnicities within
each category, these are the most common:
- African American (Americans of African descent)
- Asian American (Americans of Asian descent)
- European American (Americans of European descent)
- Hispanic American (Americans with ancestors from Spain, Mexico, Puerto
Rico, Cuba, South and Central America)
- Native American
Other preferred terms include:
- American Indian (descendants of the original North, South, and Central
Americans)
- Caucasian (commonly used to refer to anyone with light skin)
- Latino/Latina (people of Latin American descent; less broad than Hispanic
and preferred by some to Chicano/Chicana)
- people of color (for any non-European Americans and their descendants)
In informal writing, where specific racial and ethnic identification
would seem stilted, the terms black and white are sometimes
preferable with reference to individuals of African American and European
American ancestry. Note that these terms are used both as nouns and adjectives.
In both cases, they represent distinct groups of people. However, the
terms are not proper nouns and, hence, are not capitalized.
Whether you're black or white, there's no question that we all notice
skin colorespecially when it's different from our own.
Although style books agree that black and white should
not be capitalized, there may be times when, in attempting to conform
to a particular group's preference for capitalization, you capitalize
one adjective. In such cases, be consistent and capitalize all similar
terms:
Whether you're Black or White, there's no question that we all notice
skin colorespecially when it's different from our own.
Sexual Orientation
To avoid the appearance of bias based on sexual orientation, avoid acknowledged,
admitted, or avowed as adjectives preceding the words homosexual,
lesbian, bisexual, gay, or heterosexual. Preferred phrasings
include openly gay or gay. Use transgender, not transgendered. Note that most individuals with
a same-sex orientation prefer lesbian or gay over homosexual.
Stereotypes
Remember the prime directive: Write about people as individuals, not as
members of some stereotypical group. (A special dispensation has been granted
for some of the examples in this style guide.) Do not, therefore, write
about engineering students as if they were all male. Do not write about
professors as if they all dress in tweed and can't remember where they parked
their cars.
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