This guide is to ensure clarity and consistency in marketing the College of Agricultural Sciences and Penn State Extension.
Editorial consistency strengthens the Penn State brand and provides clear communications as we share the College of Agricultural Sciences story in marketing materials.
Marketing materials created for Ag Sciences follow Chicago Manual of Style. This guide covers college-specific guidance and clarification. For topics not covered in this guide, consult the following references:
Guidelines Specific to Ag Sciences
4-H
4-H is a national youth development program administered in Pennsylvania by Penn State Extension. When referring to the state program, it is Pennsylvania 4-H on first reference. Members are called 4-H’ers (with apostrophe). Children ages 5 to 7 can join the introductory Cloverbuds program and become full 4-H members at age 8.
acronyms
Avoid alphabet soup. Do not use abbreviations or acronyms that readers would not quickly recognize.
Use the complete name on first reference. If an acronym’s meaning would not be clear on second reference, do not use it.
Acronyms may be listed in parentheses if it aids clarity, particularly in educational publications.
adviser
Not advisor
Ag Hill
Acceptable reference to the area on the University Park campus home to buildings in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
Agricultural Experiment Station
The Pennsylvania Agricultural Experiment Station has no physical location. Rather it is the collective work of college faculty with research appointments who are conducting USDA-approved agricultural experiments or projects. It may be called the AES on subsequent references.
avian influenza
Lowercase, including highly pathogenic avian influenza. You may refer to it as HPAI on subsequent references.
Beef-Sheep Center
Capitalized
Berkey Creamery
This is a fully operational production facility and store in the Rodney A. Erickson Food Science Building. Use Berkey Creamery on first mention; the Creamery, with cap, on subsequent mention. As for the building, use the full name on first mention, Food Science Building on subsequent mention.
centers
In general, use the full name on first reference and the center or full name on subsequent references. Named centers should use the surname and center on subsequent references.
- Agriculture and Environment Center
- Center for Agricultural Conservation Assistance Training
- Center for Biorenewables
- Center for Chemical Ecology
- Center for Economic and Community Development
- Center for Excellence in Industrial Biotechnology
- Center for Excellence in Nutrigenomics
- Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics
- Center for Mastitis and Milk Quality Services
- Center for Molecular Immunology and Infectious Disease
- Center for Molecular Toxicology and Carcinogenesis
- Center for Parasitic and Carnivorous Plants
- Center for Plant and Mushroom Foods for Health
- Center for Pollinator Research
- Center for Professional Personnel Development
- Center for Reproductive Biology and Health
- Center for Root and Rhizosphere Biology
- Center for Sports Surface Research
- Center for Turfgrass Science
- Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness
- E. coli Reference Center
- Insect Biodiversity Center
- James C. Finley Center for Private Forests; Finley Center on subsequent references
- Microbiome Center
- Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development
- Northeast Regional Sun Grant Center
- Louis W. Schatz Center for Tree Molecular Genetics; Schatz Center on subsequent references
- Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center—Landisville
- Survey Research Center
certified crop adviser
These advisers are certified by the American Society of Agronomy. Lowercase in text. CCA or adviser may be used on second reference if meaning is clear.
climate-smart agriculture
Do not abbreviate; set lowercase.
commonwealth
Pennsylvania is one of four U.S. states established by public compact to promote the general good. As such, Pennsylvania should be referred to as a commonwealth rather than a state. When the commonwealth is used to refer to Pennsylvania, the word should be lowercase.
county extension offices
For county offices, use Penn State Extension of xxx County or xxx County Office of Penn State Extension on first reference. In subsequent references, you can refer to the county extension office, lowercase; for instance: Centre County extension office.
course titles
For-credit courses should be listed according to Penn State editorial standards, with a course name and number appearing together with the General Education suffix: AGBM 338 Agribusiness in the Global Economy. When used alone, course titles should be set in roman type and capped.
Noncredit course titles should follow the same standard.
dairy barns
The Penn State dairy barns have no official title and should be lowercase.
department and office names
Follow Penn State editorial standards.
Office for Undergraduate Education (College of Ag Sci only)
Office of Undergraduate Education (University office)
extension program units
- 4-H Youth Development
- Agronomy and Natural Resources
- Animal Systems
- Food, Families, and Communities
- Food Safety and Quality
- Horticulture
Program unit titles should not appear in marketing materials. When used in internal documents, cap the unit name and lowercase "unit." In addition, when referring to teams within these programs in internal documents, capitalize the team name and lowercase "team": Dairy team, Equine team, Green Industry team, Vector-Borne Disease team.
Farm Sense
Farm Sense is a workshop and accompanying materials designed to help farmers improve their financial literacy.
Always two words, always title case. Do not use the following, found in print and digital formats:
Farmsense, FarmSense, Farm sense, Farm$ense, Farm$en$e.
farm market, farmers market
A farm market is an on-farm retail market. A farmers market—no apostrophe—is a market where local farmers gather to sell their agricultural products directly to consumers.
Fruit Research and Extension Center
The center on subsequent mentions
honey bee
Though dictionaries spell it as one word, entomologists use two words because it is a type of bee.
institutes
In general, use the full name on first reference and the institute in subsequent mentions.
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute
- Ecology Institute
- Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences
- Institute for Computational and Data Sciences
- Institute for Energy and the Environment
- Institute for Sustainable Agricultural, Food, and Environmental Science
- Materials Research Institute
- Penn State Cancer Institute
- Penn State Law Center for Agricultural and Shale Law
- Plant Institute
- Population Research Institute
- Rock Ethics Institute
- Social Science Research Institute
interest areas
Capitalize in marketing materials, similar to majors.
Lake Erie Regional Grape Research and Extension Center
Use the center on subsequent references
Master Gardener Program
Volunteers are called Master Gardeners, capped. Cap Program when used with the complete name; lowercase the program.
Master Watershed Steward Program
Volunteers are called Master Watershed Stewards, capped. Cap Program when used with the complete name; lowercase the program.
Pasto Agricultural Museum
Use complete name on first reference, Pasto Museum on subsequent mention.
Penn State Extension
Use complete name on first reference. May be referred to as extension, no cap, on subsequent references. Staff members who provide programming at the county or regional level are known as educators.
For county offices, use Penn State Extension of xxx County or xxx County Office of Penn State Extension on first reference.
Do not use Penn State Cooperative Extension; Penn State no longer uses the word cooperative.
pesticide credits
Lowercase the word category when referring to generic category credits needed for recertification and capitalize when referring to a specific category. Capitalize Core in all uses; it always refers to the Pennsylvania Pesticide Applicator Certification Core Manual, certification exam, or recertification credits. The Private category is a specific category and should always be capitalized.
Examples:
- This course will provide Core and category recertification credits.
- This course will provide Core and Category 7 recertification credits.
- This information is in the Core manual.
Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center
Use complete name on first reference. The University's research farm is located at Rock Springs—though on a map the nearby village is referred to as "Rock Spring." May be referred to as University research center or the center on subsequent mention. Comprises the University Agronomy Farm, Entomology Farm, Horticulture Farm, and Plant Pathology Farm. Named for longtime horticulture professor and University provost emeritus.
ServSafe®
Use the registered symbol.
Snider Agricultural Arena
Use complete name on first reference; Ag Arena, capped, or the arena, no cap, on subsequent references. Named for the late Ober "Obie" Snider, 1950 Distinguished Alumnus in dairy husbandry who chaired the University Board of Trustees.
Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center—Landisville
The center on subsequent references
spotted lanternfly
Lowercase spotted lanternfly in text.
Technologies for Agriculture and Living Systems
Allow the abbreviation TALiS in external and internal communications.
trademarks
Use generic terms where possible. Do not use the trademark or registered symbol with trademarked names. Example: Roundup is the Bayer brand of the generic herbicide glyphosate.
ServSafe® is the exception; always use the registered symbol.
unit titles
Unit titles within the College of Agricultural Sciences are for internal purposes only and should not be used in marketing materials developed for external audiences. For internal audiences, capitalize the unit title and lowercase the word "unit": The Marketing unit will work on that project.
Volumetrics
Capitalize in reference to the Volumetrics diet, developed by Barbara Rolls, Helen A. Guthrie Chair in Nutrition at Penn State.
