Higher Editing: Eliminate these common errors

Have you hugged your editor today? If not, you can at least make sure you're avoiding the following common errors in your higher education prose:

• Incorrect use of "alumni." If you don't want to accidentally change the gender of an honored graduate, please commit the following list to memory:

• More than one graduate, including at least one male: ALUMNI
• More than one graduate, all female: ALUMNAE
• One male graduate: ALUMNUS
• One female graduate: ALUMNA
• There's no such thing as an "ALUM" unless you're talking about chemistry (the subject itself, not your academic department)

• Hosting a "first annual" event. There's no such thing. There are "first" or "inaugural" events, both of which imply that there will be subsequent events. However, you can't have an "annual" event until it is held two consecutive years.

• "Univeristy." This is one that spell-check should catch every time, but it still gets by on occasion.
  

• "Graduating a school." This isn't my personal pet peeve, but it is one brought up by legal writing guru Bryan Garner during his commencement speech last year. Correct usage: graduating from a school.
  

Alumni class notes: print or online?

In January, I sent a quick-and-dirty, unscientific survey on alumni class notes to college and university editors to find out more about their use online. Thanks to the 32 editors who responded. Here are the results:

• Do you post your alumni class notes online?
• 71.9% Yes
  
• 28.1% No
  
  
• If you post your notes online, how do you post them?
  
• 43.5% PDF of entire print magazine
• 30.4% Special Web page devoted to notes
• 17.4% Magazine Web site
• 13.0% Searchable database of class notes
• 4.3% News section of online alumni community/network
  
  
• For those who post their notes online, have you reduced or removed them from your printed magazines or newsletters?
• 66.7% No, we post complete class notes in print and online
• 13.3% Removed from print publications entirely
• 13.3% Other
• 6.7% Yes, we have reduced the number of class notes published in print
  
  
• Are your class notes publicly accessible online?
• 45.5% Yes, anyone can view and search our class notes
• 36.4% Yes, but the class notes can't be easily searched
• 18.2% No, they are in a password-protected site for alumni
  
  
• How often do you update your class notes online?
  
• 52.2% Every time magazine is published
• 4.3% Twice annually
• 17.4% Quarterly
• 4.3% Every two months
• 21.7% As submitted
  
  
• What are the sources of your notes? (Check all that apply.)
  
• 90.3% Alumni submissions
• 74.2% News clippings
• 25.8% Class representatives
• 16.1% Other: development office research, campus sources, obits only from news clippings, other alumni (but double-checked)
  
  
• For how long do you post individual class notes online?
• 86.4% Permanently, as part of the magazine issue
• 9.1% Six months
• 4.5% Two years
  
  
• Who updates the online notes?
• 28.6% Alumni relations staff
• 38.1% Alumni magazine staff
• 33.3% Communications/PR staff
• 23.8% Other (student workers/interns, magazine designers)

As educational institutions everywhere try to find ways to save costs, many are choosing to move their class notes online from print publications. Pros: the move lowers printing costs and can drive traffic to your alumni Web sites. Cons: security concerns from alumni, potentially reduced interest in the print publications, and issues of information permanence.