• Styles and Standards
• Penn State Altoona - the proper name
• Penn State - the proper name
• Academic and Administrative Designations and Capitalization
• Who's Who at Penn State Altoona
• Capitalization
• Degree Offerings
• Building Names
• Penn State Altoona Mark
• Intercollegiate Athletics
• Affirmative Action Statements
• Official Logos for Download
• Penn State Visual and Editorial Standards

Penn State Altoona: The Proper Name

To prospective students, parents, and Pennsylvania residents, the Penn State name and location of a campus will mean more than an administrative/academic designation such as "college." Campus names should always be used for location-specific references.

Therefore, when communicating with external audiences, do not use the names such as Abington College, Altoona College, Berks-Lehigh Valley College, etc. They refer to administrative/academic entities and should be used only in that context.

When you refer to Penn State Altoona, use the full name on first mention and the partial name indicated on subsequent mention.

• First mention: Penn State Altoona
• Subsequent mentions: Altoona campus, the college

College or campus?

Altoona College is not a Penn State location name. It refers to an administrative/academic entities and should be used only in that context and only as necessary to clarify the academic standing of the location.

• Correct: Jennifer was a first-year student at Penn State Altoona.
• Incorrect: Jennifer was a first-year student at Penn State Altoona College.

• Penn State Altoona
• Altoona campus (subsequent reference) or
• the college (subsequent reference) - NOTE: "college" is lower-case

• The Altoona College
• PSU Altoona
• Penn State-Altoona
• PS Altoona
• PSA
• PSAA
• Altoona Campus
• the Campus (Use no capitalization)