Names and Titles -writing-style-comm

President — Only capitalize when used as a formal title preceding a name. Ex) President Stephen E. Thorsett or President Steve Thorsett. The president is a scientist. Use Stephen E. Thorsett for formal documents, such as invitations.
professor — Never abbreviate. Only capitalize if used immediately before a name. Ex) Mary enrolled in Professor Joe Smith’s biology class last semester. Smith was assisted by Associate Professor Jane Doe. Meet Chris Jimenez, our new professor of biology.
vice president — No hyphen
Board of Trustees — Always capitalized, but not when using “board” or “trustees”
College of Arts & Sciences, College of Law, Graduate School of Education, Atkinson Graduate School of Management
Willamette Academy — Lowercase “academy” on second reference.
Building names — Unless used on a formal invitation, refer to buildings named after people by the last name of the person only. Ex). Hatfield Library, Long Law Library, Rogers Music Center, Sparks Athletic Center. The exception is the Hallie Ford Museum of Art (always refer to the full name on first reference. Afterward, it can be called “the museum”).
- Atkinson Graduate School of Management — Can be referred to as AGSM on second reference. Use address (900 State St. in Salem and 1120 NW Couch St., Ste. 450 in Portland, if location needs to be clarified. The Portland center is called “The Willamette University Portland Center”). Never refer to it as “the business school.” It’s “the management school” or “the graduate school of management.” When referring to degree-specific information, use Willamette’s MBA programs,Willamette MBA or just MBA programs instead of Atkinson MBA or Atkinson’s MBA. “The Atkinson Graduate School of Management houses Willamette’s MBA programs and executive education courses. All MBA programs are accredited by the AACSB International.”
- College of Law — Use address (245 Winter St. SE) if the location needs to be clarified. The “law school” is acceptable on the second reference. Other than in formal invitations, don’t use the official name “Truman Wesley Collins Legal Center.”
- Cone Field House — Three words. Don’t use this name unless necessary; many people don’t know where this is, and it’s not specified on our campus maps. Instead use Sparks Athletic Center.
- Hallie Ford Museum of Art — Roger Hull Lecture Hall is the lecture room inside the museum. The largest rotating exhibition gallery is the Henderson-Rubio Gallery and the smaller rotating exhibition gallery is the Study Gallery.
- Goudy Commons — on first reference, Goudy on second reference.
- Kaneko Commons — Use Kaneko Commons when referring to the name of the building. Kaneko can be used on second reference. Use Kaneko Café when referring to the dining facility.
- Putnam University Center — Use full name on first reference. On second reference, it can be “University Center.” Don’t use “UC.”
- Rogers Music Center/Hudson Hall — Rogers Music Center refers to the entire building. Hudson Hall refers to the performance venue inside the building.
- Sparks Athletic Center — Sparks Center is acceptable on second reference.
- The Hatfield Fountain — Don’t call it “the chicken fountain” unless in a very informal context, such as “affectionately known as ‘the chicken fountain.’”
Dr. — Only use this title for medical doctors, not for people who’ve earned a doctorate.
Titles for people
- Except in very formal communications and obituaries, courtesy titles like Mr. and Mrs. are not used.
- Job and academic titles are used for identifications. Capitalize only formal titles used directly before an individual’s name. “Dean Jane Doe, Vice President John Smith and Professor Emeritus Mary Jones met on the steps of the Oregon State Capitol.”
- Use lowercase and spell out titles when they are not used with an individual’s name. “The president, a dean, the mayor and the deputy attorney general all spoke at the opening of the program.”
- Generally, titles such as associate professor, assistant professor, professor of law or any lengthy titles are used after a person’s name, lowercased and separated by a comma. Ex) John Smith, professor of biology, and Jane Doe, Van Winkle Melton professor of law, include a community service component within their curricula, said Sue Jones, director of alumni relations.
- First and last names are used on first reference, and the last name alone on subsequent references. “Professor Jane Doe is adding a community service component to her sociology course’s curriculum. Doe will post this curriculum at willamette.edu/doescurriculum.”
- Use the Rev. before a clergy person’s name on the first reference.
- The Honorable should only be used as part of the title when the name is in a formal list, or when addressing an envelope.
Titles of offices — Capitalize formal name when used alone but not when part of a person’s title. Ex) Student Engagement & Leadership, Student Affairs, Office of Admissions. James Adams works for Student Affairs at Willamette University. James Adams, student affairs director for Willamette University, is retiring in June.
Tiles of academic departments — Capitalize only when using the full and proper name of the department. Otherwise, only capitalize proper nouns. Ex) They teach in the Willamette University Department of Music. They also teach in the English and theatre departments.

Names and Titles

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