A-Z Reference Guide

Adult Learning Center

A reference to the Rock Island location.

associate degree

• No apostrophe or extra “s” for formal or general use.
• Only capitalize when referencing formal degree.

Examples

• Associate of Arts (AA)
• Associate of Science (AS)
• Associate of Applied Science (AAS)
• Others as indicated within this formatting convention.
• “She is pursuing an associate degree.”

Bachelor degree

Formal

• Capitalize “Bachelor” and course of study.
• No apostrophe.
• No possessive or plural “s.”

Examples

• Bachelor of Arts (BA)
• Bachelor of Science (BS)
• Bachelor of Business (BB)
• Bachelor of Education (BEd)
• Bachelor of Nursing (BN)
• Others as indicated within this formatting convention.

General Use

• Lowercase for both words.
• Use an apostrophe.

Example

“He is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in American history.”

Black Hawk College

Acceptable References

• Black Hawk College
• Black Hawk
• BHC
• the college

Unacceptable References

• Black Hawk Community College
• BHCC
• BHQC
• BHCE
• BHCQC
• Blackhawk College
• Blackhawk Community College

Business Training Center

A reference to the Moline location where BTC classes are offered. All words capitalized. May also abbreviate to familiar audiences as BTC. Also refers to the department.

Community Education Center

A reference to the Kewanee location. All words capitalized.

date/time

This site generally follows AP styling suggestions for dates and times.

Full Date

• Mmm. dd, yyyy
• List the day without any additional letter suffixes ( Dec. 18, not Dec. 18^th)
• Multiple day range: dd-dd, yyyy
• Multiple month range: Mmm. dd – Mmm. dd, yyyy
• Multiple year range: Mmm. dd, yyyy – Mmm. dd, yyyy
• Month and year: Mmm. yyyy (no commas)

Days of the Week

Spell out days of the week whenever possible for clarity

• Ex: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday

In special instances (for space or clarity) month names may be abbreviated to the following:

• Ex: Sun., Mon., Tue., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat.

Month Name

Abbreviate any month names longer than 5 characters long.

• Ex: Jan., Feb., March, April, May, June, July, Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.

For abbreviated month names, always use a period to denote abbreviation.

Year

• List four digits of the year
• When referring to year spans or ranges, the second year is represented with only the last two digits of the year.
  • Ex: 2012-14
• Use all four digits of the second year when each year is in a different millennium.
  • Ex: 1998-2012

Time

• Any time: 1:27 p.m.
• Times on the hour: 8 a.m.
• Time spans or ranges: 2-4 p.m. (dash with no spaces)
• Open-ended ranges: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Midnight: Midnight
• Noon: Noon

East Campus

A reference to the Kewanee/Galva location. All words capitalized. No hyphenation.

email

Hyperlinking emails or displaying them literally (and hyperlinked) is permitted. Use lowercase capitalization.

Examples

• info@bhc.edu
• Email a Recruiter for more information.

Industrial Training Lab Extension Center

A reference to the Moline location. All words capitalized.

master’s degree

• General use: lowercase with apostrophe and possessive “s.”
• Formal use: Title case, “Master of” formula. 

Examples

• Master of Arts in (Area of Study) (MA)
• Master of Science in (Area of Study) (MSA)
• Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)
• Master of Business (MBA)
• Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
• Others as indicated within this formatting convention.
• “She received her master’s degree in history.”

movie

Italicize with title case.

news article or post

Link to the article. Capitalize consistent with the source material.

novel (or other published work)

Italicize with title case.

Outreach Center

A reference to the East Moline location. All words capitalized.

phone numbers

Format 10-digit phone numbers separated with dashes. Hyperlinking for mobile device functionality is also suggested and permitted. For clarity and ADA compliancy, a title for hyperlinked calling is also recommended.

Examples

• 309-796-5000
• Call Black Hawk College at 309-796-5000.

Quad Cities

The metro area consisting of Moline, Rock Island, Davenport, Bettendorf, etc. No hyphenation. Capitalize both words.

Quad-Cities Campus

A reference to the Moline location. All words capitalized. Hyphenate “Quad-Cities” when used as a modifier on the word “Campus” or another noun.

Welding and Skilled Trades Center

A reference to the Kewanee location. All words but “and” capitalized. Ampersand can be substituted for the word “and” for space.