ACEN Style Guidelines

ACEN Style GuidelinesCapitalizeBoard of Commissioners (BOC)Evaluation Review Panel (ERP)Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)Accreditation Standards and CriteriaACEN Policy #Evaluation Review Panel Summary of DeliberationsFollow-Up ReportFollow-Up Site Visit ReportFocused Visit ReportFocused Site Visit ReportSite Visit ReportAccreditation ManualAnnual ReportClosing ReportAppeal HearingNurse Administrator Site Visitors’ Report Response FormCandidacy Eligibility ApplicationInformation Form for Accreditation Site VisitAppeal PanelCandidacy ReviewSelf-Study Report and AppendixSelf-Study ForumNurse Administrator WorkshopTitle IVU.S. Department of Education (USDE)8Lowercaseappeal processchief executive officer [generic]nurse administratornursing education unitstate regulatory agency for nursing [generic]candidacyinitial accreditationcontinuing accreditationcontinuing accreditation with conditionscontinuing accreditation with warningcontinuing accreditation with warning for good causegood causefollow-up visitfocused visitsite visitnurse administrator response form (NARF)candidacy eligibility application formsite visit information formthird-party commentarea needing developmentstrengthstatement of non-complianceaccreditation cycleaccreditation statuspostsecondaryPUNCTUATION:Place periods and commas inside closing quotation marksPlace semicolons outside closing quotation marksPlace periods outside closing parentheses unless the parenthetical material is a complete sentenceAvoid unnecessary quotation marks and parenthesesDo not include periods in credentials, e.g. “PhD” not “P.h.D”Use a semicolon to connect similar ideas when a conjunction is not presentEx: The building is a new facility; funding for the project was completed in 2009.To ensure clarity, semicolons may be used in complex series and lists even when internal commas arenot present; use sparinglyInclude a comma after a date listed in its entiretyEx.: The call was scheduled for June 2, 2009, at 4:00 p.m.Include a serial/Oxford comma before “and” and other coordinating conjunctionsEx.: The students described the faculty as accessible, approachable, and attentive to their progress.Do not hyphenate words that end in -lyEx.: The recently hired faculty member not The recently-hired faculty memberNUMBERS:Spell out numbers nine (9) and below and follow with the numeral in parenthesesEx.: There are six (6) full-time faculty members teaching in the nursing program.Use numerals only for numbers 10 and higherEx.: The students have access to 13 databases.If numerical range, use en-dashEx: The report is due in 6–12 months.Ex: 5.2–10.5%Ex: 2015–2016, not 2015–16

ACEN Style GuidelinesSpell out any number that begins a sentenceEx.: Twenty-five (25) students were in attendance.For numbers nine and below, do not include numerals in compound modifiersEx.: a three-credit course24-hour accessFive-point Likert scaleUse commas with numbers of four or more digitsEx.: 6,000 employeesSpell out simple fractionsEx.: a two-thirds majorityUse numerals for mixed fractionsEx.: 1½ times the program lengthUse for dollar amountsEx.: 10,500 in grantsa 20-million renovationFor dates, include superscript when not using year; “st,” “rd,” and “th”Ex.: August 10thEx.: August 10, 2016ITALICS/UNDERLINE/BOLD:Italicize names of publications, including specific names of documents, handbooks, newspapers, journals,etc.Note: italics are not used in the documents list of the Site Visit ReportUnderline is used sparingly for emphasis, and bold is used for emphasis only in email formatBold is occasionally used for formatting purposes, such as for headers in reports and lettersCITATIONS:Place page numbers within parenthesesEx.: As stated in the SSR (p. 22) not As stated on page 22 of the SSRUse “p.” for single pages and “pp.” for multiple pagesDo not include internal spaces within page ranges; use an en-dash in place of a hyphenEx.: (SSR, pp. 102–105) not (SSR, pp. 102 - 105)Separate non-consecutive pages with a commaEx.: (SSR, pp. 8, 48)References to tables may be made in the main text of the sentence or within the parenthetical citationEx.: Table 1.4 in the SSR (pp. 46–48) provides a comparison As illustrated in the SSR (Table 1.4, pp. 46–48) Correct references such as “(see Table 1.4 of the SSR)”Multiple references may be included in one citation; separate with a semicolonEx.: (SSR, pp. 8, 191; SPE, pp. 18–20)ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS:Abbreviations should be spelled out (e.g., “the student learning outcomes (SLOs)”) when firstmentioned in the narrative but do not have to be spelled out in subsequent StandardsNote: For Site Visit Reports, “SSR” may be used throughout and does not need to be spelled out whenfirst introduced in the narrativeAbbreviations of titles should be avoided unless a title is used many times in the same documentEx:One or few uses: The Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs stated Multiple uses: The Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs (AVPAA) Later, the peerevaluators consulted the AVPAA regarding 9

ACEN Style GuidelinesLIST OF COMMONLY-USED ACRONYMS/BRANDS/COMPANIES/COMPETENCIES:AACN – American Association of Colleges of NursingANA – American Nurses AssociationANCC – American Nurses Credentialing CenterAngel (learning management system)BabySIM BBP – bloodborne pathogensBenner’s novice to expertBlackboard (learning management system)Bloom’s taxonomyCINAHL Plus Compass (learning management system)EBSCOhost FAFSA – Free Application for Federal Student AidFederal Supplemental Educational Opportunity GrantsFERPA – Family Educational Rights and Privacy ActGovernors State UniversityHealth Source: Nursing/AcademicHESI – Health and Environmental Sciences InstituteHIPAA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Acti-clicker InfoTrac iStan The Joint Commission (use in place of JCAHO)Knowles’ theory of andragogyLaerdal SimMan /SimBaby Likert scaleMEDLINE METIman Micromedex 2.0 Moodle National Patient Safety GoalsNCLEX – Nursing Council Licensing ExaminationNOELLE PediaSIM Federal Pell Grant (Pell grant)PowerPointProQuest QSEN – Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN Competencies)SACSCOC – Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on CollegesScientific and Medical ART ImagebaseSMART classroom/SMART boardTEAS – Test of Essential Academic SkillsVeterans AffairsVitalSim Watson’s theory of caring10

ACEN Style Guidelines11COMMA USAGE RULESRule 1: Separating words and word groups with a series of three (3) or more.Ex.: The 5-million clinical practicum facility is shared by the master’s, baccalaureate, and associate nursingprograms.Rule 2: Separating two (2) adjectives when the word and can be inserted between them.Ex: The nursing program has a diverse, qualified faculty. / The class takes place in a renovated lecture room.Rule 3: Using an -ly adjective with other adjectives.NOTE: To test whether an -ly word is an adjective, see if it can be used alone with the noun. If it can,use the comma.Ex: The faculty member was an hourly, part-time employee.Rule 4: Surrounding the name or title of a person directly addressed.Ex: The nurse administrator consults her supervisor, the Vice President, for approval.Rule 5a: Separating the day of the month from the year and after the year.Ex.: The program was established on December 5, 2003, in Mill Valley, California.Rule 5b: If any part of the date is omitted, leave out the comma.Ex.: The program was established in December 2003 in Mill Valley.Rule 6: Separating the city from the state and after the state in a document.Ex: The governing organization was founded in San Francisco, California, 20 years ago. / The clinical coordinatortaught at the campus in San Francisco, California for 20 years.Rule 7: Surrounding degrees or titles used with names.Ex.: Jane Smith, PhD, knew Sam Sunny Jr. and Charles Starr III.Rule 8: Setting off expressions that interrupt sentence flow.Ex.: The students, who were present at the time of the visit, expressed their satisfaction with the program.Rule 9: Starting a sentence with a dependent clause; do not use a comma when the sentence starts witha strong clause followed by a weak clause.Ex: If the students are available for interview, inform the peer evaluators. / Inform the peer evaluators if thestudents are available for interviews.Rule 10: After phrases of more than three words that begin a sentence. If the phrase has fewer thanthree words, the comma is optional.Ex: To be a nurse administrator, you must have previous nursing educator experience. / On August 15th manyschools will be back in session. OR On August 15th, many schools will be back in session.Rule 11: If something or someone is sufficiently identified, the appositive is considered nonessential andshould be surrounded by commas.Ex: The Vice President of Academic Affairs, who holds a master’s degree in education, was present during theexit meeting. / The college administrator who holds a master’s degree in education was present during the exitmeeting.Rule 12: Separating two strong clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction--and, or, but, for, nor.Ex: The nurse administrator revised the curriculum, but the faculty are still updating the syllabi. / The nurseadministrator makes revisions and the faculty implements changes.

ACEN Style Guidelines12Rule 13: Separating two sentences if it will help avoid confusion.Ex: The team chair interviewed students at the rehabilitation center and the medical-surgical unit, and the mombaby unit was their third stop.Rule 14: A comma splice is an error caused by joining two strong clauses with only a comma insteadof separating the clauses with a conjunction, a semicolon, or a period. A run-on sentence, which isincorrect, is created by joining two strong clauses without any punctuation.Incorrect The students indicated that the clinical experiences are sufficient, clinical experiences are alwaysinformative. (Comma splice)Correct The students indicated that the clinical experiences are sufficient; clinical experiences are alwaysinformative. OR The students indicated that the clinical experiences are sufficient, and clinical experiences arealways informative. OR The students indicated that the clinical experiences are sufficient. Clinical experiencesare always informative.Rule 15: If the subject does not appear in front of the second verb, do not use a comma.Ex.: The faculty member thought quickly but still did not answer the peer evaluator’s question adequately.Rule 16: Introducing/interrupting direct quotations shorter than three lines.Ex: The student said, "I do not care." / "Why," the peer evaluator asked, "do you not care about it?"Rule 17: Separating a statement from a question.Ex.: The program was in compliance, was it not?Rule 18: Separating contrasting parts of a sentence.Ex.: That is his classroom, not hers.Rule 19: Beginning sentences with introductory adverbs such as well, now, or yes.Ex: Yes, the nurse administrator needs the draft report in one (1) week. / Now, the class is held in anotherbuilding.Rule 20: Surrounding words such as therefore and however when they are used as interrupters.Ex: I would, therefore, like a response by Wednesday. / She would be happy, however, to volunteer to be a peerevaluator.Rule 21: Offsetting negation in a sentence.Ex.: The peer evaluators noted eight (8) licenses on file, not nine (9), when they reviewed the student records.Rule 22: Use either a comma or a semicolon before introductory words such as namely, that is, i.e., forEx., e.g., or for instance when they are followed by a series of items. Use a comma after the introductoryword.Ex: Peer evaluators review many documents, for example, catalogs, syllabi, and curricula. ORPeer evaluators review many documents; for example, catalogs, syllabi, and curricula.

ACEN Style Guidelines13SITE VISIT REPORTSSITE VISIT REPORTSPAGE MARGINS:Site Visit ReportsTop/bottom: 0.5”Left/right: 1”FONT AND SPACING:Table cell margins 0Body copy Times New Roman, 11 pt. (including headers)Tables/charts Times New Roman, 9 pt.No internal spaces for forward slashes (e.g., “yes/no” not “yes / no”)Use single-character ellipsis ( )Single-spaced text throughoutNo double-spacing after periodsFORMATTING:Remove website addresses from all sections of the reportOmit “program” after program type in header, program type, faculty table, etc. (in first pages of report)Under summary section, underline “Compliance,” but do not underline “Strengths”ADDRESSES/ADDRESS BLOCKSFirst Last, CredentialsTitleNursing Education Unit (may be combined with title in previous line, if appropriate)Governing OrganizationAddress 1 (Spell out “Road,” “Lane,” “Avenue,” “Boulevard,” and cardinal directions, “Northeast,” etc.)Address 2 (“PO Box,” not “P.O. Box”; spell out “Suite,” etc. Do not include rooms or room numbers)City, State ZipEx.:Jane Doe, MSN, RNDirector, School of NursingFlamingo College of Health Sciences123 ACEN LanePO Box 789Atlanta, GA 30326USAGE:Use titles rather than names within the narrativeEx.: According to the Vice President for Academic Affairs not According to Dr. Ray Smith, VicePresident for Academic AffairsDo not include extra information under program established sectionTHIRD-PARTY COMMENTS:The section for third-party comments should consist of at least three paragraphs: one containinginformation regarding methods used to solicit public comments, one containing information aboutattendance and comments received at the public meeting, and one describing written commentsreceived, if any. If no written comments were received, the third paragraph will be a sentence saying,“The ACEN did not receive any written third-party comments.”

ACEN Style GuidelinesINTERVIEWS/DOCUMENTS LISTS: Do not include courtesy titles (e.g., “Dr. Anne Williams”) Remove periods from credentials List credentials before position titleo Ex.: James Smith, EdD, Director of Learning Credentials order: academic degrees beginning with the highest degree achieved; licenses;certificationso Ex.: Anne Williams, PhD, MSN, RN, CNE Ronald Garcia, MBA, MS When multiple degrees are listed from the same discipline, remove all but the highest degreeo Ex.: Paul Lin, MSN, RN not Paul Lin, MSN, BSN, RN Betsy McIntire, MA not Betsy McIntire, MA, BA Do not include subject areas in credentialso Ex.: Jillian Laxmi, MA not Jillian Laxmi, MA history Do not abbreviate titleso Ex.: Melanie Flint, PhD, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs not AVP forAcademic Affairs Maintain consistency in titleso Ex.: Director of Practical Nursing; Dean of Allied Health Director, Practical Nursing; Dean, Allied Health Use a lowercase “n” for number of students interviewed; do not list individuals by nameo Ex.: LPN-to-RN students, n 8 Include dates for documents (or “current,” when applicable) and separate with semicolonso Ex.: Student Handbook, 2010; 2011 Clinical Agency Contracts, current Course Syllabi, Fall 2012; Spring 2013; Fall 2013 Capitalize committee names but not “meeting minutes”o Ex.: Nursing Advisory Committee meeting minutes, 2010–2013 Fiscal years may be noted as FYo Ex.: Budget Reports, FY 2010; FY 2011; FY 201214

curricula (plural) curriculums (plural) curriculum vitae (singular) curriculum vita/CV Spell out in formal documents curricula vitae (plural) curriculum vita/CVs Spell out in formal documents dean/director Dea