The following guidelines have been made in order to help maintain a consistent look and feel across all communication lines used in our PTA community, i.e. website, email, newsletter, Facebook, and all-school flyers and mailings.  It will help to keep an eye out for these things as we go forward.

Email Addresses

When possible, we prefer that our PTA committee members and board members use their @puestadelsolpta.org emails rather than personal emails.  Rather than contacting "Amy" at her personal email for Walkathon, a family would email "walkathon@puestadelsolpta.org". 

• This gives a consistent look and feel for families who are reaching out to our community especially since most positions change from year to year. 
• The next year when "Alicia" is the main Walkathon coordinator, the email remains the same and now forwards to the new person. 
• This helps reduce the amount of website edits and helps to protect the privacy of our volunteers.
  
  

Photos

• Never post any photos of students on our website or other form of PTA communications unless you have written/email permission from the parents.  Authorizations for any photographic display of students or use of student full names should be forwarded to the VP, President, and/or Webmaster to be saved and maintained in PTA records. 
• Use a copyrighted image only if you have received permission in writing from the copyright holder to use that image.
• Use judgment when posting photos. Website and other mediums should have a balance of whitespace and not look cluttered.
  
  

Privacy

• Never use students’ full names in any of our PTA communications (e.g. for event results such as Walkathon laps, Reflections contest winners, etc.). Always refer to them with first name and last initial, e.g. Jane D., Joshua S., Alice F., etc. 
• Never post a person’s home address or phone number on our website or other form of PTA communications. If a home address is the location for an event, then ask that an email be sent to the point person for more information. You can also obtain authorization from the homeowner to display the address on the website/newsletter and make sure to notify them that this is not a safe practice.  Save this authorization.
• Try to avoid putting personal email addresses on the website. Find out if there is a “@puestadelsolpta.org” email already established for the person/people and if not, ask if it makes sense to create one. E.g. walkathonraffle@puestadelsolpta.org instead of JohnDoe@yahoo.com. 
• Use generic emails in communications whenever possible rather than people's personal emails, despite what email they use when they reply to emails.
   

Web Links

• Links should open in the same window if it is linked to another custom page on the PTA website and the user can easily access the menu bar to find his/her way to other pages on our website.
• Links should open in a new window if it is a link to an external site, or to a PDF document.
• When renaming web page links, coordination should occur between the webmaster, web content editor, and if appropriate, any involved VPs and/or committee chairs so that all links used on various webpages and non-web flyers/documents are changed accordingly.  Otherwise, links to pages can be broken and cause problems for the website.  The presidents should also be CC'ed to be aware of important changes. 
• When directing people to web links, try not to use generic statements like "Click here for the link" or "Get more information here." Rather, it is better to use language that is inherently informative. For example - hot linking words such as "Register Now!" "Our classroom rules," "More information," and "I want to volunteer."
  
  

Data

• Data displays can be confusing.  When possible, display data in a table with appropriate headings.
• Try to present information concisely.  Less is often more. Redundant information can clutter and cause people to lose interest.

Documents

• It is a best practice to convert any Word or Excel Documents into PDF files before posting them on the website to eliminate (or at least discourage) users from editing forms or notifications before they complete them or reference them.
• For documents that change from year to year, it is best to include the school year in the saved file name so that it can be easily tracked for updates.
• Any documents or forms for PTA events, classes, or information about PTA programs should include the PTA logo in the upper right or left corner of the document.
• Documents should be carefully edited and proofread for errors and inconsistencies before being released to the Puesta del Sol community. Utilize your communications team for assistance in this area.  A "fresh" eye to a document can often catch errors that would otherwise go unnoticed by the document's original writer.

Naming Conventions

To maintain consistency in our communications, please use the following naming conventions as described:

• Puesta del Sol - not Puesta, PDS, PdS, or any shortened version
• Walkathon - capitalized, non-hyphenated; not Walk-A-Thon or any other derivation.
• Spirit Wear - capitalized, two words; not spiritwear or any other derivation.
• WatchDOGS - one word, DOGS in capitals; not Watchdogs, Watch Dogs, or any other derivation.  Exception: Use Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) in the introductory paragraph about the program, per request of the WatchDOGS program director.
• Passport Club - not Passport or another shortened version. 
• RAD (Readers Are Doers!) - not R.A.D. or Rad, or any other derivation
• Consider using "the Principal", rather than "Principal Shearer" if it makes sense.  This reduces editing of files/pages later when staff changes occur.