style guide - alpha sigma...

Style Guide

The information contained in this document is proprietary to Alpha Sigma Tau

Sorority. No part of this document may be used by or shared without the express

written permission of Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority.

Alpha Sigma Tau Headquarters

3334 Founders Road

Indianapolis, IN 46268

317-613-7575

www.alphasigmatau.org

Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority Style Guide

Updated January 2018 2

Table of Contents

Grammatical Voice ............................................................................................................. 3

Editorial ............................................................................................................................... 4

Collegiate Chapter School Names .................................................................................. 22

Punctuation ...................................................................................................................... 27

References ........................................................................................................................ 28



Grammatical Voice

In grammar, the voice is the usage of a verb that indicates whether its subject acts (active

voice) or is acted upon (passive voice).

In a sentence written in the active voice, the subject of sentence performs the action. In a

sentence written in the passive voice the subject receives the action.

Active: The Vice President of Finance believes the chapter must place a limit on the

budget.

Passive: It is believed by the Vice President of Finance that a limit must be placed on the

budget by the chapter.

Active: Research shows that high stress can negatively impact grades.

Passive: It was shown that grades can be negatively impacted by high stress.

Active: The dog bit the man.

Passive: The man was bitten by the dog.

Use the active voice whenever possible. Writing in active voice makes your meaning

more clear and concise for readers, and keeps the sentences from becoming too

complicated or wordy.

Tips:

• Look for a "by" phrase (e.g., "by the dog" in the last example above). If you find one,

the sentence may be in the passive voice. Rewrite the sentence.

• If the subject of the sentence is somewhat anonymous, see if you can use a general

term, such as "research” above.

When to use passive voice:

There are sometimes good reasons to use the passive voice:

• To emphasize the action rather than the actor: “After long debate, the proposal was

endorsed by the Executive Committee.”

• To be tactful by not naming the actor: “The procedures were somehow

misinterpreted.”

• To describe a condition in which the actor is unknown or anonymous: “Every year,

thousands of people are recruited into fraternities and sororities.”

• To create an authoritative tone: “Visitors are not allowed after 9 p.m.”

Copied from The Writer’s Handbook, The University of Wisconsin – Madison, with slight alteration

Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority Alpha Sigma Tau Style Guide


Editorial

A

academic courses/degrees/majors

Always lowercase except for languages:

English major, science major.

If academic degrees are spelled

out, they should be lowercase: a

bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree. There

is no possessive used in bachelor of arts

or master of science.

A bachelor’s degree or bachelor’s is

acceptable in any reference.

When academic degrees are

abbreviated, they are capitalized: B.S.,

Ph.D.

When academic degrees are used

after a name, separate by commas: B.A.,

Ph.D.; Judy Morris, Ph.D., attended

Convention.

accept, except Accept is a verb meaning

to receive: Judy will accept the award at

Convention. Except is a preposition

meaning to exclude or omit: Alice would

like to hold any position on the chapter’s

Executive Committee except Chapter

President.

actives Do not use when referring to

Alpha Sigma Tau members. The terms

members, collegiate members, alumnae

members, or Sisters are appropriate.

acronyms Are allowed and they should

be spelled out on first reference. For the

Sorority name, avoid using AST; use AΣT

instead.

advisor Do not use the other spelling,

adviser. Capitalize only when referring to

a title: Chapter Advisor Betty Smith.

affect, effect Affect is a verb meaning to

have an effect on or to make a difference

to something: Her attitude affects those of

all chapter members.

Effect is a noun means a result of an

action or another cause: The effect of the

Tau Honor Council hearing was noticeable.

Affiliating Alumnae Initiation

Ceremony Ritual Ceremony initiating

non-affiliated women as alumnae

members of Alpha Sigma Tau.

afterward Not afterwards.

age Always use figures and use hyphens

for ages expressed as an adjective: A 70-

year-old chapter, but the chapter is 70 years

old. The Chapter Advisor, 55, has a

daughter, 25. The woman, 27, has a

daughter 4 years of age. The woman is in

her 20s (no apostrophe).

alcohol free, alcohol-free Hyphenate

when used as a modifier: This is an



alcohol-free event. The event tonight is

alcohol free.

all-campus, all-university Lowercase

and hyphenated.

all-campus average Lowercase and

hyphenated.

all-women’s average Lowercase and

hyphenated.

all right Do not use alright.

alma mater Lowercase and no hyphen.

If referring to a song, then capitalize and

set off with quotes.

a lot Always written as two words.

Alpha Signal Full name of the official

Sorority collegiate chapter newsletter.

May be abbreviated to ASN upon second

reference.

Alpha Sigma Taus Plural of more than

one member (no apostrophe).

Alpha Sigma Tau National Foundation

Always capitalize the full title. On second

reference, it may be referred to as

Foundation or the Foundation.

Alpha Sigma Tau Ritual Capitalize.

alum Do not use.

alumna Feminine singular.

alumnae Feminine plural.

alumnae chapters/associations

Capitalize only when referring to a

specific chapter or association: Chicago

Alumnae Chapter.

alumna(e) initiate(s) Women who were

initiated as alumnae members through

the Affiliating Alumnae Initiation

Ceremony.

Alumnae Panhellenic Association An

association for alumnae of National

Panhellenic Conference member groups.

May be abbreviated as APA upon second

reference.

alumni Masculine plural.

alumnus Masculine singular.

a.m., p.m. Lowercase, with periods.

Avoid redundancy: 10 a.m. in the morning.

ampersand (&) Use the ampersand

when it is part of a formal name. It should

not otherwise be used in place of and,

unless on social media where character

limitations exist.

The Anchor Official magazine of Alpha

Sigma Tau. Always italicized, never set off

by quotes.

anniversary Capitalize when

accompanied with a specific year: Alpha

Sigma Tau celebrated its 100th Anniversary.

Lowercase when used in general

reference: The chapter is planning an

anniversary celebration.



annual Do not use first annual. Instead,

use inaugural. Annual can only be applied

to an event that has happened two or

more years in succession, and intended to

occur every year.

app Short for application, as in a

technology application. App is acceptable

on second reference and is never

acceptable when referring to a job

application. App is also acceptable when

commonly referring to a smartphone app.

apostrophe Use in place of omitted

letters and numbers: I’ve, rock’n’roll, class

of ’94, the ‘80s theme. Use to show plural

of a singular letter: mind your p’s and q’s,

the Oakland A’s. Do not use to show plural

of multiple letter combinations: DVDs,

JPGs.

assume, presume Assume means to take

as true without evidence. Presume means

to take as true for a specific reason.

AST Do not use in print. Always use a

Greek Sigma instead of S, as in AΣT.

award(s) Capitalize only when referring

to a specific award: Ada A. Norton Award,

award presentation.

awhile, a while He plans to stay awhile.

He plans to stay for a while.

B

bachelor of arts, bachelor of science

see academic degrees/courses/majors.

backward Not backwards.

Badge Always capitalized.

biannual Means twice a year.

Bid Day Always capitalized.

biennial Means every two years.

Billhighway Financial management

system for all Alpha Sigma Tau chapters;

one word, always capitalized.

bimonthly Means every other month,

every two months.

biweekly Means every other week, every

two weeks.

board/committee Capitalize only when

referring to a specific or formal board or

committee: Chapter Advisory Board,

Nominations Committee, a committee.

bylaws One word and only capitalized

when referring to specific bylaws: Mu

Chapter Bylaws.

C

cannot Do not use can not.

CAMPUSPEAK All one word; one “S.”



chair Not chairman, chairwoman, or

chairperson unless it is someone’s formal

title in an non-Alpha Sigma Tau board or

committee. Capitalize as a formal title

before a name.

chapter Capitalize “chapter” when

immediately following “Alpha Sigma Tau”

or the Greek-letter name of the specific

chapter. Whenever possible, include the

host university upon first reference: The

Alpha Chapter at Eastern Michigan

University won an award. The Alpha Sigma

Tau Chapter at Eastern Michigan University

hosted a picnic. The Alpha Chapter was

present at National Convention. When

referencing two or more particular

chapters, do not capitalize: the Alpha Beta

and Mu chapters.

Chapter Advisory Board Official title.

Always capitalized: Chapter Advisory Board

members. On second reference, may be

referred to as CAB.

charter Always lowercase.

class year Lowercase: freshman,

sophomore, junior, senior.

colony Status of a new chapter prior to

installation. Only capitalize when referring

to a specific colony: The colony is doing

well. The Zeta Alpha Colony is doing well.

college Capitalize only when used with

the actual school name: Eastern Michigan

University, the college swim team. See also:

university.

College Panhellenic Association Always

capitalized. CPH may be used upon

second reference.

collegian(s) A noun meaning college

students who are members. The collegians

attended Officer Academy.

collegiate An adjective meaning relating

to college students: The collegiate

members attended Officer Academy.

Collegiate Initiation Ceremony The

proper term for Alpha Sigma Tau’s

collegiate membership initiation Ritual

Ceremony. Always capitalize.

comma After a series listing, there is a

comma before the last conjunction:

Alumnae, collegians, and volunteers are

present at the workshop.

committee See board/committee.

composition titles Use italics to identify

titles of books, magazines, newspapers,

computer games, movies, operas, plays,

works of art, and albums.

Use quotation marks to identify

the titles of articles, poems, songs,

television programs, lectures, videos,

lectures, and speeches.

Do not use italics or quotation

marks around software programs:

Microsoft Word, Photoshop.

In a title, capitalize the principal

words, and prepositions, conjunctions,



articles (the, a, an), or any words of fewer

than four letters if it is the first or last

word in a title.

check-in (n. and adj.) The National

Officers met at the check-in desk at the

hotel.

check in (v.) Did you check in at the hotel

yet?

continuous open bidding An

opportunity for chapters that do not

reach quota during a recruitment process

to reach quota and/or total. Always

lowercase. May be abbreviated as COB

upon second reference.

continuous recruitment A style of

recruitment defined by the National

Panhellenic Conference. Always

lowercase. May be abbreviated as CR


Convention In reference to Alpha Sigma

Tau National Convention, it is always

capitalized: The 40th Alpha Sigma Tau

National Convention was held in Atlanta.

Carrie Staehle attended National

Convention. National Convention – alone,

but capitalized – may be used upon

second reference.

Council See National Council.

The Crest The official alumnae newsletter

of Alpha Sigma Tau. Always italicized,

never set off by quotes.

cut (during recruitment) Do not use.

Correct terminology is released.

D

dates Always use Arabic figures, without

st, nd, rd or th. See months.

daylong One word.

days of the week Capitalize and do not

abbreviate.

daytime One word.

day to day, day-to-day Hyphenate when

used as a compound modifier: They have

extended the contract on a day-to-day basis.

deactivate, depledge, desisterize Do

not use. Use resign or dismiss.

dean’s list Lowercase in all uses.

decades Use Arabic figures to indicate

decades of history. Use an apostrophe to

indicate numerals that are left out; show

plural by adding the letter s: the 1920s, the

‘80s, the mid-1800s.

degrees See academic

courses/degrees/majors.

directions, regions Lowercase north,

south, southwest, eastern, etc., when

referring to compass directions. Capitalize

when referring to specific geographic

regions: the Northeast.



dollars Always lowercase. Use figures

and the $ sign in all except casual

references or amounts without a figure:

The gavel cost $20. Jane, please give me a

dollar. Dollars are flowing into the

endowment.

For specific amounts of more than

$1 million, use the $ and numerals up to

two decimal places: The campaign

fundraised $1.25 million.

do’s and don’ts Use apostrophes.

double-click Hyphenated.

download One word.

E

e.g. Use as an abbreviation of for

example, as in: Every chapter has the same

executive officers (e.g. Chapter President,

Vice President of Growth).

See also: i.e.

each Takes a singular verb: Each of the

members has a Badge.

Educational Consultant May be

abbreviated as EC after first reference.

See titles for capitalization standards.

email No hyphen

every day (adv.), everyday (adj.)

except See accept, except.

Executive Committee Proper term for a

chapter’s leadership. Always capitalized

since it is a specific committee. Do not

use Executive Board, E-Board, exec., E-

Comm, etc.

extension For phone number

extensions, abbreviate as Ext. or ext.

F

Facebook Always capitalized.

farther, further Farther refers to a

physical distance: She ran farther in the

marathon than she anticipated. The Chapter

Advisor will look further into that matter.

fewer, less In general, use fewer for

individual items, less for bulk or quantity.

Fewer than 10 applicants called (applicants

are individuals); I had less than $50 in my

pocket. ($50 is one quantity)

Formal Capitalized when referring to a

specific event. Lowercase when referring

to a general event. The women had a great

time at Formal. The chapter usually holds its

formal in April.

formal recruitment Do not capitalize

per the NPC Manual of Information.

Foundation/foundations Always

capitalized when referring to the Alpha

Sigma Tau National Foundation. On

second reference, it may be referred to as



Foundation. When referring to a general

foundation, it is always lowercase.

Founder(s) Capitalize when referring to

one or all of Alpha Sigma Tau’s Founders.

Founders Day Not Founders’ Day or

Founder’s Day.

founding Always lowercase.

founding members Colony members

who are present for the chapter’s

installation. Always lowercase.

fractions Spell out amounts less than 1,

using hyphens between the words: two-

thirds, four-fifths. Use figures for precise

amounts larger than 1, converting to

decimals whenever practical.

fraternity, Fraternity Capitalize in

reference to a particular fraternity.

Lowercase to refer to fraternities in

general.

freshman, freshmen Always lowercase.

fully structured recruitment A style of

recruitment defined by the National

Panhellenic Conference. Always

lowercase. May be abbreviated as FSR


fundraising, fundraiser, fundraised

One word in all cases.

G

GINsystem One word. GIN is always

capitalized and system is always

lowercased.

good standing Always lowercase.

grade point average Abbreviated as

GPA on all reference.

gray Not grey.

Greek Do not use in reference to a

group: the Greek life on campus is thriving.

Replace with fraternity/sorority life,

fraternal, or fraternal community.

Greek is only acceptable when part

of a formal name, like Greek Council.

GreekLifeEdu Online prevention

program designed to educate fraternity

and sorority members on the risks of

alcohol, hazing, and sexual assault while

equipping students to make healthy and

safe decisions; offered to all new

members of Alpha Sigma Tau. One word.

Greek Week Always capitalized.

H

Headquarters Capitalize when in

reference to Alpha Sigma Tau

Headquarters. Example: Headquarters

Staff can answer your questions.

The History of Alpha Sigma Tau Alpha

Sigma Tau’s history book. See composition

titles for formatting.



Homecoming Always capitalized.

home page Two words.

hometown One word.

house Refers to the building, not the

chapter.

Housing Corporation Always capitalized.

I

i.e. Use as an abbreviation of namely or

in other words, as in: Every chapter has the

several leadership positions (i.e. advisors,

officers, committee members). See also: e.g.

Illuminate Alpha Sigma Tau’s four-year

member development program for

collegians.

in-depth Hyphenated.

Induction Ceremony Ritual Ceremony

for collegians becoming alumnae

members.

informal recruitment Do not capitalize.

initiates Always lowercase.

Initiation Capitalize as a noun.

Lowercase when using a verb tense.

Example: She was initiated tonight. My

favorite memory of Alpha Sigma Tau was my

Initiation. See Collegiate Initiation Ceremony

Instagram Always capitalized.

installed/installation Lowercase when

referring to the general installation of a

chapter or of officers. Capitalize when

part of an event: The chapter was installed

yesterday. We had so much fun at the

Installation Banquet.

Interfraternity Council Not

hyphenated. IFC is acceptable on second

reference.

iPad, iPhone, iPod Do not capitalize.

When beginning the sentence, precede

with an article or modifier.

internet Lowercase.

intramural Not intermural. Intramural

should only be used as an adjective, not a

noun. She enjoyed playing intramural

sports, not She enjoyed playing intramurals.

it’s, its It’s is a contraction for it is or it

has: It’s up to you. It’s been a long time. Its is

possessive: The dog enjoys the tennis ball,

but its favorite toy is the Frisbee.

J

junior Always lowercase.

K



L

last Avoid the use of last as a synonym

for latest if it might imply finality.

lay, lie The action word is lay. It takes a

direct object. Laid is the form for its past

tense and its past participle. Its present

participle is laying.

Lie indicates a state of reclining along a

horizontal plane. It does not take a direct

object. Its past tense is lay. Its past

participle is lain. Its present participle

is lying.

When lie means to make an untrue

statement, the verb forms

are lie, lied, lying.

PRESENT OR FUTURE TENSES:

Right: I will lay the book on the table. The

prosecutor tried to lay the blame on him.

Wrong: He lays on the beach all day. I will

lay down.

Right: He lies on the beach all day. I will lie

down.

IN THE PAST TENSE:

Right: I laid the book on the table. The

prosecutor has laid the blame on him.

Right: He lay on the beach all day. He has

lain on the beach all day. I lay down. I have

lain down.

WITH THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE:

Right: I am laying the book on the table. The

prosecutor is laying the blame on him.

Right: He is lying on the beach. I am lying

down.

lead, led Lead, as a present tense verb,

means to go first: She leads the chapter in

service hours. Lead, as a noun, is a heavy

metal. Led, as a past tense verb, means

went first: She led her team to a winning

title.

legacy Always lowercase.

less, fewer See fewer, less.

lie See lay, lie.

lifelong One word.

lifestyle One word.

lifetime One word.

LinkedIn Always capitalized.

long-term As an adjective use hyphen.

long time, longtime They are longtime

friends. They have known each other for a

long time.

M

magazine title Capitalize and italicize

the name. Do not place it in quotes.

Lowercase the word magazine unless it is

in the publication’s title.



Manual of Information National

Panhellenic Conference’s universal

manual. Abbreviated as MOI upon second

reference. Not Green Book.

marathons Most marathon-type events

are spelled with hyphens. If the word is

familiar enough to be read without the

hyphens, they can be omitted: bike-a-thon,

walk-a-thon, telethon.

master’s degree See academic

courses/degrees/majors.

Member Development Program See

Illuminate.

Membership Recruitment Acceptance

Binding Agreement. Abbreviated as

MRABA upon second reference.

midterm One word.

minimally structured recruitment A

style of recruitment defined by the

National Panhellenic Conference. Always

lowercase. May be abbreviated as MSR


months Capitalize and spell out names

of months in all uses. Do not abbreviate.

When a phrase lists only a month and a

year, do not separate the year with

commas: November 1899 was a

monumental time for Alpha Sigma Tau.

more than, over In reference to

quantities, use more than, not over: There

were more than 400 women at Convention.

Over generally refers to spatial

relationships: Consultants fly all over the

country.

N

names Identify members with initiating

chapter and school in this format: Abigail

Pearce, Alpha (Eastern Michigan University).

Include maiden name if applicable and

use the first name upon second reference

in articles.

nationals Do not refer to the National

Organization as Nationals. Do not use in

reference to the National Officers,

National Council Members, or

Headquarters.

National Convention See Convention.

National Council Alpha Sigma Tau’s

governing board. Always refer to as the

National Council or National Council in

writing and formal communications. Can

be referred to as the board informally and

in casual conversation.

National Organization Refers to Alpha

Sigma Tau Sorority. Always capitalized.

National Panhellenic Conference An

umbrella organization for 26 international

women’s fraternities and sororities. Alpha

Sigma Tau is a member group.

Abbreviated as NPC upon second

reference.



National Pan-Hellenic Council A

coordinating body for the nine

historically African American fraternities

and sororities. Alpha Sigma Tau is not a

member group. Abbreviated at NPHC


new member Not pledge. Always

lowercase.

new member class Not pledge class.

Always lowercase.

newspaper titles Capitalize the in a

newspaper’s name if that is the complete

name of the publication. Always italicize

the full newspaper name.

nicknames Nicknames that actually are

preferred first names are acceptable as a

first name. Nicknames should be

consistently used or be indicated between

parentheses upon first reference – such

as Jenny Smith or Jennifer (Jenny) Smith.

nonalcoholic One word, no hyphen. Use

only as a description of a beverage that

does not contain alcohol. See also alcohol

free, alcohol-free.

non-Greek Do not use.

non-members

nonprofit No hyphen. Example: The Alpha

Sigma Tau National Foundation is a

nonprofit organization.

Not Anymore An online educational

program designed to reduce the risk of

sexual assault; offered to all collegians of

Alpha Sigma Tau.

numerals Write out numerals of nine or

less, or when beginning a sentence. Use

figures for 10 or more. Exception: use

numerals for dates, times, sports scores,

and Alpha Sigma Tau titles. When large

numbers must be spelled out, use a

hyphen to connect a word ending in “y” to

another word: twenty-two, one hundred

forty-five. For numbers higher than 999,

use a comma after the first digit: 2,564.

Place hyphen between the numeral and

the year when designating the length of

membership or when using as part of an

adjective: 25-year member or 50-year

member or 25- or 75-year member.

O

Officer Portal Always capitalize. Items

are located in Officer Portal, not on Officer

Portal: The document is available in Officer

Portal.

officers Capitalize titles. Do not

abbreviate officer titles except in Sorority

reports/forms and business matters: The

Executive Director, National President, and

National Vice President attended the

conference. The Chapter President and

Chapter Advisory Board members received

the email. National President Carrie Staehle

made the statement. Effie Lyman, Chapter

Advisor, was present. Headquarters Staff

can answer your question.



ongoing One word.

online, offline One word.

P

Panhellenic Capitalize when referring to

the College Panhellenic Association.

Parents Day, Parents Weekend

Capitalize, no apostrophe.

partially structured recruitment A

style of recruitment defined by the

National Panhellenic Conference. Always

lowercase. May be abbreviated as PSR


party Do not use in relation to

recruitment, use event.

percent One word. Do not use the

symbol % in formal writing or articles.

Percent takes a singular verb when

standing alone or when singular words

follow an “of” construction: The teacher

said 60 percent was a failing grade. She said

50 percent of the membership was there. It

takes a plural verb when a plural word

follows an “of” construction: She said 30

percent of the members were in attendance.

percentages Use figures for numbers

over 10 or when expressing decimal

places below 10: one percent, 3.5 percent,

14 percent. For amounts less than one

percent, precede the decimal with a zero:

The cost of living rose to 0.9 percent.

periodical titles Use italics to identify

newspaper, magazine, or periodical titles.

For example: I read a story about a sister

who traveled for a year with her sorority

sisters. It was titled, “Around the World

with my Sisters.”

philanthropy, philanthropic The

philanthropy is the organization. Chapters

have philanthropic events.

philanthropic events Not

philanthropies. Do not capitalize.

Pin Pledging Ceremony The Pin

Pledging Ceremony is the Ritual

ceremony that shows the more solemn

and sacred side of our sisterhood. Always

capitalized. Not Pinning.

Pinterest Always capitalized.

play off (v.) Two words.

playoff(s) (n., adj.) One word: The playoff

game has started. We really enjoyed

watching the playoffs.

pledge A promise made by a new

member. No longer a term used to mean

“new member.”

p.m., a.m. Lowercase, with periods.

Avoid redundancy: 8 p.m. at night.

potential new member Preferred for

women participating in recruitment. Not

capitalized. Use PNM or PNMs on second

reference. Only use PNM’s when taking a



possessive form: The PNMs attended the

event. The PNM’s pen was broken.

potluck One word. No hyphen.

probation Not poor standing.

publication titles Use italics to identify

Alpha Sigma Tau handbooks and other

publications: The Guide to Chapter

Business Meetings is a helpful resource.

Q

quota Always lowercase.

quotation marks The period and the

comma always go within the quotation

marks. The dash, question mark, and

exclamation point go within the quotation

marks only when they apply to the

quoted matter: “It’s an excellent

philanthropic event,” she said. They go

outside when they apply to the whole

sentence: Was their recruitment theme “Set

Sail with Alpha Sigma Tau”?

Also see composition titles.

R

recruitment counselor Do not use Rho

Chi, Rho Gamma, or recruitment guide.

recolonize, recolonization One word,

no hyphen.

recruitment Preferred word. Do not use

“rush.”

Recruitment Recommendation Form

Alpha Sigma Tau’s form to recommend

potential new members to chapters for

recruitment.

reinstall, reinstallation

reorganize, reorganization One word,

no hyphen.

Release Figure Method The National

Panhellenic Conference approved

method for matching potential new

members to sororities/women’s

fraternities for recruitment events and

invitations to membership. Use RFM upon

second reference.

retweet On Twitter, the practice of

forwarding a message or link from

someone else to your followers. Spelled

out in all references, though common

usage on Twitter abbreviates to RT.

Ribbon Pledging Ceremony The Ribbon

Pledging Ceremony begins the new

member education program and

welcomes the new pledged members into

our special bond of sisterhood. Also

referred to as Informal Pledging Service.

Always capitalize. Not Ribboning.

Ritual In referring to specifically Alpha

Sigma Tau Ritual, it is capitalized. The

book, Alpha Sigma Tau Ritual Book, is

capitalized and italicized. General



references are not capitalized: The ritual

ceremonies of most fraternal organizations

are secret.

Ritual Ceremony Refers to ceremonies

in the Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority Ritual Book.

Capitalize when referencing Alpha Sigma

Tau Ritual Ceremonies.

roommate One word.

rush, rushee Never use these words.

Use recruitment and potential new

member.

S

seasons Lowercase spring, summer, fall,

and winter, unless they appear as a part

of a formal name or event: Spring Formal;

are used to specify issues of the Sorority

magazines: The Anchor, Fall/Winter 2015;

The colonization will happen in fall 2015.

semiannual Twice a year, a synonym for

biannual.

semicolon See punctuation.

semiformal One word.

semimonthly Means twice a month.

senior Always lowercase.

series listing After a series listing, the

punctuation is used before the last

conjunction: The collegiate chapter

representatives, alumnae chapter

representatives, past National Presidents,

and fun-loving alumnae attended National

Convention.

sightsee One word as a verb.

sight-seeing Hyphenated as an adjective

or noun.

sightseer One word.

sisterhood events, sisterhood socials

Not sisterhoods. Do not capitalize.

sisterhood retreat Do not capitalize.

snap bidding An option available to

chapters that did not fill quota. Chapters

may offer bids to PNMs whose

preferences were not matched. This

process takes place before bids are

distributed. Snap bidding is NOT intended

to fill spaces in the chapter total and is

limited to any woman who participated in

the designated recruitment. Do not

capitalize.

sophomore Always lowercase.

sorority Not all NPC member

organizations use sorority in their official

name: Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority; Delta

Gamma Fraternity. Verify before attaching

sorority to the formal name. Capitalize

when referring to a specific organization:

Alpha Sigma Tau is colonizing in Colorado

next semester. This will be the Sorority’s

second chapter in Denver.

spring See seasons.



spokesman, spokeswoman Do not use

spokesperson. Use representative if you

do not know the gender of the individual.

Standing Committees Capitalize only

when referring to specific Alpha Sigma

Tau Standing Committees: Nominations

Committee.

states In articles, spell out completely:

She has lived in Ypsilanti, Michigan, for

many years.

stationary, stationery To not move is to

be stationary. Writing paper is stationery.

subcommittee No hyphen is used.

substance free (n.), substance-free

(adj.) Means in absence of alcohol, drugs,

and tobacco. Example: Sororities must

maintain substance-free housing.

summa cum laude Graduation honor

equivalent to with highest distinction.

summer See seasons.

syllabus, syllabi

T

tailgate One word.

teammate One word.

teamwork One word.

telephone numbers Use hyphens, no

parentheses or periods. Example: 317-

613-7575, ext. 7572.

television shows Put names of

television shows in italics: The Today Show.

Specific episodes should be put between

quotation marks. For example: My

favorite episode of Seinfeld is “The Bizarro

Jerry.”

text, texting, texted Acceptable in all

usages as a verb for to send a text

message.

than, then Than is the conjunction used

in comparisons; then is an adverb

denoting time.

that (conjunction) Use the conjunction

that to introduce a dependent clause if

the sentence sounds or looks awkward

without it. When it doubt, include that.

Omission can hurt; inclusion never does.

that, which (pronouns) That is the

preferred pronoun to introduce essential

clauses that refers to an inanimate object

or an animal without a name: The anchor

is a symbol of the sorority that means so

much to all members of Alpha Sigma Tau.

Which is the only acceptable pronoun to

introduce a nonessential clause that

refers to an inanimate object or an animal

without a name: Alpha Sigma Tau

Headquarters, which is located in

Indianapolis, is where the Sorority’s

employees work. An essential clause

cannot be eliminated without changing



the meaning of the sentence. A

nonessential clause can be eliminated

without altering the basic means of the

sentence.

-thon Lowercase such as walk-a-thon.

Most marathon-type events are spelled

with hyphens. If the word is familiar

enough to read without the hyphens, they

can be omitted: bike-a-thon, telethon.

till Or until. Not ’til.

times Use figures for noon and midnight.

Use a colon to separate hours from

minutes: 9 a.m., 1 p.m., 3:30 p.m. Avoid

redundancies: 9 this morning or 9 a.m.

Avoid adding zeros to the hour: Use 2 p.m.

rather than 2:00 p.m.

time zones Abbreviations are acceptable

on first reference for zones within the

continental United States if the

abbreviation is linked with a clock

reading: 9 p.m. ET. Avoid using

designations for Daylight or Standard

time: EDT or CST.

titles See officers.

total Allowable chapter size, as

determined by the College Panhellenic

Association. Not capitalized per National

Panhellenic Conference Manual of

Information.

toward Not towards.

trending Used to indicate that a

particular topic is getting a lot of attention

on a social networks, typically Twitter. Do

not use without context and explanation:

The topic of the Super Bowl is trending on

Twitter today.

trick-or-treat Hyphenate.

T-shirt Capitalize the “T.” Hyphenated.

tug of war Not hyphenated.

turnout no hyphen when used as a

noun: They anticipated a large turnout to

the event.

TV Abbreviated is acceptable, though

spelling out television is preferable.

Twitter Social media platform where

messages are restricted to 140

characters. Always capitalized.

tweet, tweeted Verb used to describe

sending an update via the social media

site, Twitter. A Twitter message is also

known as a tweet.

U

Unanimous Agreements Always

capitalize when referring to the National

Panhellenic Conference Unanimous

Agreements.

undergraduate Do not use when

referring to Alpha Sigma Tau members

who are currently enrolled in college and

belong to the collegiate chapter at their

college/university. Refer to these



members as collegiate members or Alpha

Sigma Tau collegians.

unfollow To stop receiving updates from

an individual or organization on Twitter.

One word.

unfriend To remove someone from a list

of friends, usually on Facebook. Defriend

is acceptable but less common.

United States Spell out when used as a

noun. Use U.S. (no spaces) as an adjective

only.

university See college.

until or till. Not ‘til.

V

voicemail One word.

W

www.alphasigmatau.org The official

website for Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority.

wall As in Facebook wall. Always

lowercase.

Washington, D.C. Use a comma after

D.C., like with a state name. If used at the

end of a sentence, do not add another

period.

website One word.

weeklong One word as an adjective.

well-being Hyphenate.

who, whom Use who and whom for

references to human beings and to

animals with names. Use who when

someone is the subject of a sentence,

clause or phrase. Use whom when

someone is the object of a verb or

preposition: Who is there? Whom do you

wish to see?

who’s, whose Who’s is a contraction for

who is: Who’s coming to the recruitment

event? Whose is the possessive case of

who: Whose notebook is this?

winter See seasons.

woman Use woman or women, not girl(s)

or lady/ladies when referring to Alpha

Sigma Tau members or sorority women.

work force Two words.

workout One word when used as a

noun: She enjoyed her workout at the gym.

He is going to work out.

workshop One word.

worthwhile One word.

X



Y

year-end Hyphenate when used as an

adjective: They attended the year-end party.

yearlong One word.

years When referring to a period of years,

no apostrophe: the 1950s. When omitting

years, use apostrophe: The early ‘70s.

your, you’re Your is the possessive case

of you: Your mother is an inspiration to all

of us. You’re is the contraction for you are:

You’re a great sister!

YouTube One word.

Z

ZIP codes Use all caps for ZIP, but

lowercase code. Do not put a comma

between the state name and the ZIP code:

Indianapolis, IN 46268.



Collegiate Chapter and Colony Listing, Including School Short

Names

Chapter School Long Name Acceptable Upon Second

Reference

Alpha Eastern Michigan University EMU

Alpha Epsilon Western Illinois University WIU

Alpha Gamma Henderson State University Henderson State

Alpha Lambda Radford University Radford

Alpha Phi West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester University

Alpha Pi Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Slippery Rock University

Alpha Psi University of Northern Iowa UNI

Alpha Tau Edinboro University of Pennsylvania Edinboro University

Alpha Xi Mansfield University of Pennsylvania Mansfield University

Beta Central Michigan University CMU

Beta Chi Ferris State University Ferris

Beta Delta Duquesne University Duquesne

Beta Epsilon Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Shippensburg University

Beta Eta Southern Illinois University Edwardsville SIUE

Beta Iota Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville University

Beta Mu Salisbury University SU

Beta Nu Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Bloomsburg University

Beta Omega Monmouth University Monmouth

eta Phi California University of Pennsylvania Cal U




Reference

Beta Pi Eastern Illinois University EIU

Beta Rho Arkansas Tech University Arkansas Tech

Beta Tau University of Massachusetts Lowell UMASS Lowell

Beta Theta St. Mary's University St. Mary's

Beta Upsilon New Jersey Institute of Technology NJIT

Beta Xi Michigan Technological University Michigan Tech

Chi Shepherd University Shepherd

Delta Indiana University of Pennsylvania IUP

Delta Alpha Gannon University Gannon

Delta Beta Fairmont State University FSU

Delta Delta University of Illinois at Chicago UIC

Delta Epsilon Marist College Marist

Delta Eta Belmont University Belmont

Delta Iota Providence Campus of Johnson & Wales

University

JWU's Providence Campus

Delta Mu Cumberland University Cumberland

Delta Nu Beloit College Beloit

Delta Omega Penn State Altoona Penn State Altoona

Delta Phi New York University NYU

Delta Pi Oglethorpe University OU

Delta Psi Denver Campus of Johnson & Wales

University

JWU's Denver Campus




Reference

Delta Rho Chowan University Chowan

Delta Sigma University of the Sciences USciences

Delta Tau Oakland University OU

Delta Theta Moravian College Moravian

Delta Upsilon Saint Leo University Saint Leo

Delta Zeta East Stroudsburg University of

Pennsylvania

East Stroudsburg University

Epsilon Alpha Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Embry-Riddle

Epsilon Beta University of Texas-Pan American UTPA

Epsilon Chi University of Minnesota Duluth UMD

Epsilon Delta Rogers State University RSU

Epsilon Epsilon North Miami Campus of Johnson & Wales

University

JWU's North Miami Campus

Epsilon Eta University of the Incarnate Word UIW

Epsilon Gamma Georgia Southern University Armstrong

Campus in Savannah

Armstrong Campus in Savannah or

Armstrong Campus

Epsilon Iota New York Institute of Technology NYIT

Epsilon Kappa Trine University Trine

Epsilon Lambda Indiana University South Bend IU South Bend

Epsilon Mu SUNY University at Buffalo UB

Epsilon Nu McDaniel College McDaniel

Epsilon Omicron University of Southern Indiana USI




Reference

Epsilon Phi Winona State University Winona

Epsilon Pi Rhode Island College RIC

Epsilon Psi Rowan University Rowan

Epsilon Rho SUNY Geneseo Geneseo

Epsilon Sigma Bridgewater State University Bridgewater

Epsilon Tau Kenyon College Kenyon

Epsilon Theta Fairleigh Dickinson University FDU

Epsilon Upsilon Dalton State College Dalton

Epsilon Xi Gustavus Adolphus College Gustavus

Epsilon Zeta University of Virginia's College at Wise UVa-Wise

Gamma Delta University of Massachusetts Dartmouth UMASS Dartmouth

Gamma Epsilon SUNY Potsdam SUNY Potsdam

Gamma Gamma University of West Alabama UWA

Gamma Lambda Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Kutztown University

Gamma Mu West Virginia University Institute of

Technology

WVU Tech

Gamma Omega La Salle University La Salle

Gamma Pi Lycoming College Lycoming

Gamma Psi Fitchburg State University Fitchburg State

Gamma Rho Seton Hall University Seton Hall

Gamma Tau Lebanon Valley College LVC




Reference

Gamma Theta Penn State Erie, The Behrend College Penn State Behrend

Gamma Upsilon California State University, Los Angeles Cal State L.A.

Gamma Xi Grand Valley State University Grand Valley

Gamma Zeta Frostburg State University FSU

Omicron Concord University Concord

Phi Southeastern Louisiana University Southeastern

Psi James Madison University JMU

Rho Southeastern Oklahoma State University SE

Sigma SUNY Buffalo State Buffalo State

Upsilon University of Central Arkansas UCA

Zeta Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania Lock Haven University

Zeta Tau Longwood University Longwood



Punctuation

apostrophe Use in place of omitted letters and numbers : You’ve, rock’n’roll, Class of ’99, the

’30s theme. Use to show plural of a singular letter: I need to dot the I’s and cross the T’s; the

Oakland A’s. Do not use to show plural of multiple letter combinations: CDs, JPEGs.

capitalization (general) Capitalize all specific Alpha Sigma Tau personnel, boards, and

committees: The Nominations Committee met last week. During the meeting, the committee

came up with a new nominations chart.

comma During a series listing, use the serial (or Oxford) comma before the last

conjunction: My sisters, my advisor, and the fraternity/sorority advisor of the campus met for a

meeting.

dates A comma always follows the day and the year of a date in a sentence: The Sorority

was founded on November 4, 1899, in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

geography A comma always follows the city and the state in a sentence: The Sorority was

founded in Ypsilanti, Michigan, at Michigan State Normal College.

hyphens Hyphens are joiners. Use them to avoid ambiguity or to form a single idea from

two or more words. The fewer the hyphens the better; use them only when not using them

causes confusion. Small-business owner but health care center.

compound modifiers When a compound modifier – two or more words that express a

single concept – precedes a noun, use hyphens to link all the words in the compound

expect the adverb very and all adverbs that end in -ly: a second-period goal, a greyish-blue

skirt, a know-it-all-attitude, a very fun event, an easily remembered number.

semicolon(;) In general, use a semicolon to indicate a greater separation of thought and

information than a comma can convey, but less than the separation than a period implies.

The latest issue of The Anchor is being printed; it should arrive in mailboxes later this week.

to compare a series Use semicolons to separate elements of a series when the items in

the series are long or when individual segments contain material that also must be set off

by commas: The meeting consisted of Effie Lyman, Alpha Sigma Tau Executive Director; Carrie

Staehle, Alpha Sigma Tau National President; Ada A. Norton, Alpha Sigma Tau Vice President of

the National Foundation; and Abigail Pearce, Alpha Sigma Tau National Vice President.

spacing In sentences, use a single space after a period at the end of a sentence, after a

semicolon, and after a colon.



References

Associated Press (AP) Stylebook, 2015

Alpha Gamma Delta Fraternity Style Guide

Alpha Sigma Tau Stylebook, 2014, 2015

National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) Manual of Information 20th Edition, 2015

The Writer’s Handbook, The University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2014

style guide - alpha sigma...

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