Groups as Authors

Groups (organizations, agencies, schools, etc.) are sometimes named as authors.  In general, spell out the group name each time you cite the source. This applies to narrative citations or parenthetical citations. If a group name is long, and you need to cite it more than once, you can abbreviate it or use its initials after the first time.  When using this shortened method, be sure you provide enough information in the first in-text citation, so that subsequent citations will be clear to your readers. Here are examples for the first and subsequent  in-text citations in both formats.

First in-text citation in narrative citation format

Winter Park Public Library (WPPL, 2014)

              Notice that WPPL is introduced in the first citation to signal change in subsequent citations. 

Subsequent in-text citations in narrative citation format

WPPL (2014) 

First in-text citation in the parenthetical citation format

(Winter Park Public Library [WPPL], 2014)

Subsequent in-text citations in the parenthetical citation format

(WPPL, 2014)