MSDE Publication Standards

​Publication Contents

Names

The names of the State Superintendent, the State Board President, and the Governor – in that order – must be placed on ALL external publications.

The names are as follows:

Carey M. Wright, Ed.D.
State Superintendent of Schools

Joshua L. Michael, Ph.D.
President, Maryland State Board of Education

Wes Moore
Governor

The full list of State Board members is NOT required on publications, but may be placed when the publication is mandated by the Board. In these instances, list the first and last name of each member but WITHOUT his/her title (e.g., Dr., Mr., Ms., Mrs.).

Assistant Superintendents may decide what other names, if any, should be listed on their division's publications.

Logo

The Department logo must be placed on all publications. Take care to maintain the logo's proportions and legibility.

The logo must be downloaded from the webpage, MSDE Logos and NOT copied from the MarylandPublicSchools.org homepage.

  • It's preferred that the logo be on the front cover, but it's acceptable to place it on the back.
  • If a publication or event is co-sponsored, you may place additional logos on the publication as long as the Department logo is of equal or greater size.

Date

Place the date (month and year, no comma between the two) on the cover – front or back – of the publication.

Non-Discrimination Statement

The MSDE Non-Discrimination Statement is required on some publications.

If your publication relates to recruitment or employment only, you must include the statement below.

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) does not discriminate based on age, ancestry, color, creed, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, mental or physical disability, national origin, race, religious affiliation, belief or opinion, sex, or sexual orientation in matters affecting employment or in providing access to its programs and activities.

For Inquiries related to MSDE's Non-Discrimination policy, please contact:

Agency Equity Officer
Office of Equity Assurance and Compliance
Office of the Deputy State Superintendent of Operations
Maryland State Department of Education
200 West Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21201-2595
oeac.msde@maryland.gov
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Use Relay

If your publication announces a sponsored program, include the following statement:

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) does not discriminate based on age, ancestry, color, creed, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, mental or physical disability, national origin, race, religious affiliation, belief or opinion, sex, or sexual orientation in matters affecting employment or in providing access to its programs and activities; MSDE also provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.

For Inquiries related to MSDE's Non-Discrimination policy, please contact:

Agency Equity Officer
Office of Equity Assurance and Compliance
Office of the Deputy State Superintendent of Operations
Maryland State Department of Education
200 West Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21201-2595
oeac.msde@maryland.gov
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Use Relay
 

For small-sized publications (i.e., postcards, tri-fold brochures, pamphlets) and space does not permit the full statement, the following statement shall be printed:

MSDE prohibits discrimination and is committed to providing equal access.
View the full statement


Contact Information


Contact information for the Department must be placed on the cover – inside or outside, front or back.

The full contact information for the Department is below. (Note the format of the Web address.)

  Maryland State Department of Education
  [Division and/or Office]
  200 West Baltimore Street
  Baltimore, Maryland 21201
  [Phone Number]
  Deaf and Hard of Hearing Use Relay

  marylandpublicschools.org


Copyright

A copyright notice must be placed on MSDE original materials for which we want to retain ownership, such as curriculum, assessments, instructional resources, and publications. This ensures that users will request permission from MSDE to reprint any part of the publication. This notice should be placed on the title page, the page immediately following it, the front or back cover (inside or out) or the first page of the main body of work. The notice must include:

  • The word Copyright or the copyright symbol: ©
  • Maryland State Department of Education
  • The year of first publication of the work

               For example: © Maryland State Department of Education 2023

Photo


You can retrieve it on the MSDE Logos webpage.


Publication Design


Type

Use consistent point sizes for heads, subheads, and text.

For heads, subheads, and pull-out quotes, use a bold san serif font. San serif fonts include Montserrat, Lato, Arial, Calibri, Tahoma, Helvetica, and Century Gothic.

For body text, use a sans serif font (e.g., Montserrat, Lato, Arial, Calibri, Tahoma, Helvetica, and Century Gothic.).

Body text should be no larger than 10 point.

Justification

In publications, DO NOT center text. Heads and text should always be left justified.

Images

Photos of children throughout the publication should reflect the demographics of Maryland public schools (that is, White children should comprise about 46% of all children featured, African American children should comprise about 38%, Hispanic children, 10%, and Asian children, 6%).

For this reason, your cover sign DOES NOT have to feature children. However, if you choose to use photograph(s) on the cover, it/they must be demographically representative.

DO NOT download any images from the Internet for use in print or Web publications except those purchased through a pay photo site (e.g., Photos.com, iStockPhoto.com).