Capitalization

CalArts’ standard style is to user lower case whenever possible. When in doubt, follow Merriam-Webster.

CalArts-specific capitalization

Uppercase

The Institute (when referring to CalArts)

Schools

• School of Art
• School of Critical Studies
• School of Film/Video (note the slash)
• The Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance (School of Dance okay on second reference)
• The Herb Alpert School of Music at CalArts (“at CalArts” is important to distinguish between CalArts and The Herb Alpert School of Music at UCLA; School of Music is okay on second reference)
• School of Theater

Degree programs

Acting, Art, Character Animation, Photography and Media, etc.
See all degree programs

Administrative divisions

• Office of the President
• Office of the Provost
• Academic Affairs
• Advancement
• Enrollment Management
• Facilities Development and Management
• Finance and Administration
• Information Technology
• Student Affairs
• Cultural Partnerships

See full list of formal names for all schools, programs, specializations, divisions, and offices.

Lowercase

Use lowercase unless referring to something by its proper name. Here are some words people like to capitalize but shouldn’t:

• administration, the administration
• alum
• century
• commencement
• faculty
• program (Acting program, not Acting Program)
• school (when used generally; e.g. the Music school)
• staff
• trustee
• visiting artist

General capitalization

Professional titles

• Capitalize titles denoting position, etc. when they precede a person’s name (Dean Ranu Mukherjee; Board Chair Charmaine Jefferson)
• Lowercase titles when they follow a person’s name (Ranu Mukherjee, dean, School of Film/Video; Charmaine Jefferson, chair, CalArts Board of Trustees)
• Lowercase titles that stand alone (the president, the board chair, the dean), general references to position (trustee, faculty, staff, doctor), and descriptive but informal titles (alum Laura Owens, student Joyce Ozaki).

Proper names
Capitalize all proper names, such as:

• Corporations, unions (Sony, Google, Screen Actors Guild, United Auto Workers)
• Civic and social groups (Los Angeles Stage Alliance, Santa Clarita Chamber of Commerce)
• Honors and awards (Academy Awards, Oscars, Grammy Awards, Golden Globes)
• Major geographic regions (West Coast, Midwest, Southern California, Upstate New York)

Lowercase the words federal (the federal government), state (the state of California) and city (the city of Los Angeles).

Do not capitalize words because they seem important. That’s not how it works.