Sallye McKee, associate to the president for diversity, is encouraging Metro State personnel to use particular language when referring to certain groups of people. The Cabinet voted May 14 to include these terms in the official editorial style guide of the College.

In official College publications and when representing the College to the external public, the term “unauthorized immigrant” should be used rather “illegal alien,” and “of color” or “diverse ethnic backgrounds” rather than “ethnic minority.”

“Given the many possible descriptions of fellow human beings,” said McKee, “it is always important that we strive to honor and respect human dignity. For instance, the term 'unauthorized immigrant' attempts to do that, while the term 'illegal alien' does not.”

The editorial style guide can be found at http://www.mscd.edu/brandcentral/editorial.html.