TABLE OF CONTENTS

Last Revised by Steven H. Le (8/2010)

Introduction 2
Foreword from the Regional
Communications Coordinator
for Bidding

Deadlines 3-6
CAACURH Regional Conference 3
No-Frills Conference 4
NACURH National Conference 5-6

Designing a Bid 7-12

Developing a Theme 7
Font Usage 8-9
Obtaining & Using Graphics 9 - 11
Aesthetics & Graphic Placement 12

Writing a Bid 13-17

Following Criteria 13
Rules of Thumb 14
Letters of Support 15
Creativity 16
Final Words on Writing 17

Miscellaneous 18

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 1

 FOREWORD

Hello Prospective Bidder!

Let’s face it. Not all of us are the best graphic designers or writers in the world. But
that should never discourage you from submitting a bid. In this guide, I am going to try to
bring out your inner creativity and imagination by providing you basic principles and
concepts of bid designing and writing. Furthermore, I am going to give you more
resources in bid designing. The Internet has so many free resources that I believe many of
you have not discovered. What I hope is by revealing some of these resources, you may go
out on the web searching and discovering new resources.

Content is severely important in a bid, and there are bids that have won that may
have lacked in the graphic design department, but the contents of the bid had substance
and depth. The page limit you are given is your easel for your creation per se. Some bid
writers have a hard time fitting information, pictures, and an appendices in their bid. This
guide will help prioritize what needs to be in a bid and what is just suggested and not
required.

The reason why I call this guide “Style and Substance” is that if you strengthen the
style (or design) and the substance (or writing) of the bid, then it increases your chances of
winning at CAACURH, No-Frills, and/or Nationals. Furthermore, it makes reading bids a
lot more fun for schools that want to learn about different programs and different RHAs
throughout our great region!

Cougar Pride,

Steven H. Le
Regional Communications Coordinator
for Bidding 2010-11

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 2

 DEADLINES FOR CAACURH
REGIONAL CONFERENCE BIDS

At the CAACURH Regional Conference, there are three awards:

1. Program of the Year (POY) Voted In NCC Boardroom
2. Student Award for Leadership Training (SALT) Voted In NCC Boardroom
3. Conference Host for CAACURH 2011 Voted In NCC Boardroom

Note: The finalists for POY and SALT and Schools bidding for Conference Host must also
present a 10-minute presentation at the CAACURH Regional Conference.

The bidding process and deadlines goes as follows:

1. Letter of Intent October 13, 2010 - 11:59pm EST
2. Pre-Bid Submission October 20, 2010 - 11:59pm EST
3. Final Bid Submission October 31, 2010 - 11:59pm EST

For Program of the Year and Student Award for Leadership Training:
1. Under the Governing Documents, the Regional Board of Directors (RBD) reserves the
right to pick three finalists if the total number of bids from each category is more than
three. We will notify the three finalists in each category on November 4, 2010. Those
three finalists will present in the NCC Boardroom at the CAACURH Regional Conference.

2. We strongly encourage for you to prepare for the presentation even before notification
of finalists. Presentations are ten (10) minutes long maximum along with a ten (10)
minute questions and answers session.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 3

 DEADLINES FOR NO-FRILLS
CONFERENCE BIDS

At the No-Frills Conference, there are fifteen (15) awards:

Individual Awards:
1. Bonnie S. Byrne Advisor of the Year Award Voted In NCC Boardroom
2. NCC of the Year Voted In NCC Boardroom
3. First Year Experience Voted In NCC Boardroom
4. Student of the Year Voted In NCC Boardroom
5. President of the Year Voted In Presidents Boardroom

School Awards:
1. School of the Year Voted In NCC Boardroom
2. RHA Building Block of the Year Voted In NCC Boardroom
3. Commitment to Diversity Voted In Presidents Boardroom
4. Commitment to Service Voted in NRHH Boardroom

NRHH Awards:
1. NRHH Outstanding Chapter of the Year Voted In NRHH Boardroom
2. NRHH Outstanding Member of the Year Voted In NRHH Boardroom
3. NRHH Building Block of the Year Voted In NRHH Boardroom

Continued Service:
1. Hallenbeck Service Award (for advisors) Voted by Directorship
2. Distinguished Service Award Voted by Directorship

Conference Host:
1. Conference Host for No-Frills 2012 Voted In NCC Boardroom

Regional Board of Director Positions (Directorship and Regional Communications Coordinators)

The bidding process and deadlines goes as follows:

1. Letter of Intent January X, 2011 - 11:59pm EST
2. Pre-Bid Submission January X, 2011 - 11:59pm EST
3. Final Bid Submission January X, 2011 - 11:59pm EST

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 4

 DEADLINES FOR NACURH
NATIONAL CONFERENCE BIDS

For NACURH/ACUHO-I Daniel Siler Program of the Year (National

POY):

1. Application Form, Commitment Verification Form, Bid (maximum 20 pages, 10-12 font size),
500-1000 word article on program due on December 1 to the Conference Resource Consultant.
2. Two finalists notified no later than January 20.
3. Two finalists present at NACURH National Conference, and winner is selected solely on the
presentation.
4. Winner will also present at ACUHO-I (Association of College and University Housing Officers
International) Conference.

Please go to the NACURH Inc. website (http://www.nacurh.org/) to download the resources when
they are posted. The RCC for Bidding will e-mail all those on the CAACURH listserv when these
resources are posted.

For more information, please contact Kenrick Ali (Conference Resource Consultant) at
kali@housing.sjsu.edu.

For NACURH/ACPA Student Award for Leadership Training (National

SALT):

1. Application Form, Commitment Verification Form, Bid (maximum 20 pages, 10-12 font size),
500-1000 word article on program due on December 1 to the Conference Resource Consultant.
2. Finalists are selected in Early December.
3. Winner is selected from the Finalists in Early January and notified by Late January.
4. Winner will present at the ACPA (American College Personnel Association) Conference and the
NACURH National Conference.

Please go to the NACURH Inc. website (http://www.nacurh.org/) to download the resources when
they are posted. The RCC for Bidding will e-mail all those on the CAACURH listserv when these
resources are posted.

For more information, please contact Kenrick Ali (Conference Resource Consultant) at
kali@housing.sjsu.edu.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 5

 DEADLINES FOR NACURH
NATIONAL CONFERENCE BIDS

For the following awards, the bid will be due to the National
Chairperson by April 15 th :
Individual Awards:
1. Valerie Averill Advisor of the Year Award 8 pages, 10-12 font size
2. On Campus Marketing NCC of the Year 8 pages, 10-12 font size
3. First Year Experience 8 pages, 10-12 font size
4. Student of the Year 8 pages, 10-12 font size
5. President of the Year 8 pages, 10-12 font size

School Awards:
1. School of the Year 30 pages, 10-12 font size
2. Building RHA of the Year 20 pages, 10-12 font size
3. Commitment to Diversity 30 pages, 10-12 font size

NRHH Awards:
1. NRHH Outstanding Chapter of the Year 30 pages, 10-12 font size
2. NRHH Member of the Year 8 pages, 10-12 font size
3. NRHH Building Block of the Year 30 pages, 10-12 font size

Continued Service:
1. Hallenbeck Service Award (for advisors) 16 pages, 10-12 font size
2. On Campus Marketing Distinguished Service Award 16 pages, 10-12 font size

For schools that are bidding to host a national conference, I highly suggest
contacting the Kenrick Ali (Conference Resource Consultant) at
kali@housing.sjsu.edu and looking at pages 39-57 of the NACURH Policy Book for
information (http://www.nacurh.org/)

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 6

 DESIGNING A BID

Developing a Theme
The first step to designing a bid is developing a theme. Developing a theme as a starting point helps
you decide on what colors to use, what graphics to use, and what fonts to use. A theme also helps
developing the aesthetics of the bid design.

For example, if one is bidding for Program of the Year and one’s program is a Halloween program, it is
very easy to develop a Halloween theme. Traditional colors like orange and black come into mind
along with other dark colors. Spooky looking fonts and graphics come into mind as well. A neutral
sans serif font works well with a specialized Halloween font. For Individual awards, an example to
develop a theme is to choose a theme reflecting that individual whether it may be that individual’s
personalities, favorite TV show, favorite colors, and etc. A theme allows you to think cohesively.

The 2010 National POY Winner’s bid theme was The 2010 National SALT Winner’s bid theme was
Halloween. Notice the color scheme, the font, an anime cartoon. They utilized drawings, bright
the background, and the graphics. colors, and fun-looking fonts to accentuate the
theme.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 7

 DESIGNING A BID

Font Usage
1. There are so many free fonts available to you on the web. I encourage you all to use them. I
highly suggest these sites:
- http://www.dafont.com/ - http://new.myfonts.com/ (registration required)
- http://www.fontsquirrel.com/ - http://www.1001freefonts.com/
- http://www.smashingmagazine.com/tag/typography/

2. There are some fonts that you should never use, because
they will never look good in any theme. Here are some
examples of some fonts I highly discourage from using:

- Comic Sans MS - Papyrus

- Curlz MT - Monotupe Corsiva
- Lucida calligraphy - Brush Script

⌘ These fonts have curvatures and weird angles that

cannot accommodate any theme or color scheme, and
they obviously look tacky and are novelty fonts.

⌘ Furthermore, some of these are not readable at font

sizes 10-12, and magnifying the size of the fonts also
magnifies the imperfections.

3. Search for those new fonts, replacing the typical Times New Roman, Arial, Verdana, and etc.
Those old overused fonts are normally used for term papers and essays. Reading bids should
be fun and insightful! There can be so many great substitutions that one can use that are
already there on your computer.

Instead of Using: Use:

Times New Roman Palatino Linotype, Georgia, Century
More: Search for “Serif” fonts online
Arial, Verdana Calibri,
Franklin Gothic Book, Helvetica, Myriad Pro
More: Search for “Sans Serif” fonts online

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 8

 DESIGNING A BID

Font Usage (continued)

4. Sans Serif vs. Serif – The differences and when to use what?
Sans Serif: More “modern looking”
Examples: Gills Sans, Trebuchet MS

Serif: More “classical looking”

Examples: Book Antiqua, Garamond

NOTE: The red marks featuring the differences

between Serif and Sans Serif.

These are basically the two most basic types of fonts. Be consistent. Don’t try to mix and
match san serif and serif fonts in the same bid, because during most times, they will not
match. By having a theme for the bid, this should be avoidable.

5. Wordart is not your friend. Enough said.

6. For any script fonts, words in ALL CAPS makes formal looking fonts look suddenly tacky.
DOES THIS LOOK GOOD? NO!!!!!
Conclusion:
Avoid using overused fonts, avoid Wordart, avoid mixing sans serif and serif fonts in the same bid,
and find new fonts (serif or sans serif) that are “clean-looking.”

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 9

 DESIGNING A BID

Graphics Usage
1. High resolution graphics can easily be obtained on Google Images.

2. Microsoft Clip Art has low quality graphics that lack style, and I highly discourage using it.

Example:

Figure: The first picture (a) is obtained

from Microsoft Clip Art whereas the
second picture (b) is obtained from
Google Images. The first picture (a) looks
(a) (b)
too “amateur cartoonish” whereas the
second picture (b) has a lot more style.

3. File types: there are different types of files for graphics. The ones I would definitely try to avoid
are .jpeg, .jpg, and .gif files, because they show compression (lost of quality and a bit of color).
Graphic files like .png, .tif, and .eps are the highest quality files, which maintain their quality
when you enlarge or shrink them.

4. Maintain the proportion in your pictures! Don’t distort them - it severely takes away the high
resolution from them. Even a slight distortion can be noticed easily.

Example:

 
(a) (b)

Figure: With the original picture being the middle cougar, the first example (a) shows that the
cougar’s face has been poorly distorted and its proportions are lost. The second example
(b) is enlarged but its proportions are maintained.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 10

 DESIGNING A BID

Graphics Usage (continued)

5. Vector Graphics: graphics that are easily expandable and retractable and never loses it quality
or color in the process. The origin and definition comes from the use of mathematics to create
them. These are the best tools to enhance the design of your bid. These can also serve as
templates to your bid’s background.

⌘ Most vector graphic files will be EPS files. Is it

important to know what is? No, but more
importantly, it is to know what programs
open it and how to use them. On both Mac
and Window operating systems, the Adobe
programs (Photoshop, Indesign, etc.) can
easily open them. Microsoft Word cannot
open the EPS by simple “drag and drop.”
Follow these instructions:

1. Click on "Insert" at the top of window.

2. Then click on "Picture."
3. Then click on "From File." You'll get the
"Insert Picture" dialog box.
4. Choose "Encapsulated PostScript
(*.eps)" for "Files of type."
5. Navigate to the directory that contains
the EPS file, and double-click on the
filename of the EPS file you want.
Figure: American University’s 2009
Nationally winning School of the Year bid
⌘ You can search for free vector graphics on uses vector graphics as shown on the top left
Google, but are some websites that offer some and the bottom right. The right uses of
really great vector graphics that one can use: graphics along with their placement
elevated the design and the aesthetics of this
- http://www.allvectors.com/ wonderful bid.
- http://www.dryicons.com/
- http://www.freevectors.org/
- http://www.vectorportal.com/
- http://www.freevectordownload.com/

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 11

 DESIGNING A BID

Aesthetics and Placement of Graphics

You have the theme, the font, and the graphics. Now, you bring all of these different facets of a bid
together. How?

⌘ Be deliberate
You want to be deliberate of
which pictures and graphics
you want to utilize. Factors
include the relevance of
that picture to the page’s
contents and its size. Also,
take in account on whether
the picture’s size or
dimensions cause problems
in the format of the page.
For examples, does the
picture go off margins?
Does the picture change the
“text wrapping” and make
the text around the picture
look oddly aligned? Does
rotating the picture 20° Figure: In 2010, University of Akron won the national “NRHH Outstanding
(degrees) give a rustic feel to Chapter of the Year” with an outstanding bid. The placement of graphics
the bid and its theme? were deliberate by using pictures to show visually what their three
programming events were like on this page.

⌘ Be creative
Now, you do not need to re-create the design of past winning bids. Put your unique stamp on
your design and how you place your graphics. Work with your theme, and see how the
placement of your pictures reflects that theme (examples: scrapbook theme, professional
theme, etc.).

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 12

 WRITING A BID

Following Criteria
⌘ Introduction
If I had to choose between style and substance, substance definitely goes first. The reason
you’re writing a bid is to provide tons of information on your topic (program, school,
individual, etc.). Bidding is not just about recognition, but it is about educating others, and
you want to do that in the best manner as possible – providing facts, details, and following the
criteria for the bid’s contents.

When you’re prioritizing what kind of information you are putting in a bid, make sure your
biggest priority is following criteria, because the selection of national and regional winners are
based on the content in accordance of the criteria or categories’ questions.

On a personal testimony, when Rutgers University – New Brunswick won the national Program
of the Year award, Rutgers received a full evaluation of our bid by the selection committee at
the Semi-Annual Business meeting, which they evaluated strictly on the criteria stated in their
policy book.

⌘ Are we restricted to the criteria only in the writing of our bid?

There is no clear answer, and the reason is you have to look at the page limit and the criteria
questions that the region or the NBD wants you to answer. Some individual bids require some
substantial information from the criteria and letter(s) of support.

I know in the Bidding Handbook in the CAACURH Governing Documents, the “suggested
criteria” of some awards give the connotation that it is only suggested, but if you do look in
the National Handbook (www.nacurh.org), these are the criteria for selection, expressing
required criteria. I highly recommend using these criteria as starting points and as guides to
writing your bid’s contents, especially if you are contemplating going for national awards.

Remember, national policy overrides regional policy, and if you are planning to bid for a
national award, please refer to the national policy book at the NACURH website.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 13

 WRITING A BID

Rules of Thumbs
⌘ Required criteria comes first
Cover any topics that are required first. Remember, evaluations on the regional and national
level are done on the basis of the required criteria.

⌘ After required, cover suggested

Once you cover all the required information, cover as many of the suggested criteria as much
as possible. Suggested criteria can offer you as a guide to providing supporting details.

⌘ Clarity is key
Remember, your readers (National Communications Coordinator, National Residence Hall
Honorary Representatives, Residence Hall Association Presidents, etc.) are not from your
school’s residence hall organization (RHA, NRHH, etc.). Ensure that when proofreading, have
someone review your bid that is not familiar with your school’s program, organization,
individual, and etc.

⌘ Never assume your readers know already

Never assume your reader knows information about your bidding topic! For example, if RHA
structure is pertinent and a relevant factor to the your bid, describe your RHA structure further,
because all schools have different RHA structures.

⌘ Be short, sweet, and to the point, and cut the “filler and fluff”
Make your sentences concise and to the point. If you make your sentences too long when the
message you want to convey can be done in a short sentence, you can collectively waste
several paragraphs, which can be used for more content than “filler and fluff.” Bid readers are
reading so many bids, and not all of them will read them word-by-word.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 14

 WRITING A BID

Letters of Support
⌘ If it is required, it is required! As a result, plan ahead!
First, please remember my first rule of thumb; cover your required criteria first. If the guidelines
state that a letter of support is required, then you must comply with that guideline by
providing letter(s) of support.

In the case that you are required, please remember to leave plenty of time to get your letter of
support from whomever you need to get it from (RHA Advisor, RHA President, Housing
Director, etc.). Also, be sure to provide them background information to ensure that their
letters of support do not contain typos or any factual discrepancies.

⌘ If it is not required, you don’t really need to worry about it!

If you are not required to provide a letter of support, please refer to the first rule of thumb.
Cover any required information and ensure the content of the required criteria is as thorough
as possible.

Subjectively, some people would want a letter of support just because “it looks good.” What I
appeal to you is to ensure that a letter of support is there as a supporting supplement to your
bid, and ensure that your optional letter of support does not compromise the required
contents of your bid.

⌘ Do I need one, two, three, four…fifty letters of support?

If letters of support are required, normally the guidelines will state how may letters of support
you will need.

If letters of support are not required, remember the more letters of support limits the number
of pages you have for graphics and required information. If it comes to the point where your
letters of support are compromising your content’s quality, limit your letters to one or none. In
this specific case, less is more (less letters give more results).

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 15

 WRITING A BID

Creativity
⌘ Accentuating your theme (page 7) in your bid’s wording
The wording of subtitles and titles of certain pages add a bit of whimsicalness and fun to your
bid, which definitely cuts the “term-paper” tone of your bids with tons of textual information.
Moderation is key, because overusing creative wording without explanation can cause clarity
issues, making a whimsical bid turn cheesy and ambiguous.

⌘ A fine line between creativity and ambiguity

The biggest problem in bids is that their themes can become too ambiguous that it takes an
explanation for people to understand the creative concept of their bid’s theme. We are a
region of diverse interests and knowledge of a diverse array of music, TV, movies, and etc. Here
are two tips I offer to you:

1. K.I.S.S. – Keep it simple stupid! (not suggesting that you’re stupid!) Concepts can be
muddled and construed from something simple to making it so complex to the point
where you simply don’t understand the wording of titles and etc. If you develop a
theme, don’t stretch it and distort it to ambiguity.

Good examples from 2010 No-Frills Bids:

⌘ “In Des We Trust” – Advisor of the Year (creative play on words)
⌘ “Respecting Our Roots” – School of the Year (using graphics of trees to
accentuate the theme)
⌘ “Springing Into A New Year” – First Year Experience (use of words synonymous to
spring like ‘blooming’ or ‘planting the seeds’ to accentuate the theme)

2. Don’t be obscure. For example, using an obscure quote from a movie or TV show to
describe a person on an individual award will definitely leave plenty of people in the
dark when reading and reviewing this bid.

3. Remember one of our rules of thumb: clarity is key!

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 16

 WRITING A BID

Final Words on Writing

⌘ To Single Space or To Double Space?
There has been a trend where bids are utilizing double space for their bids. Some of those bids
won nationals (Program of the Year 2007), and therefore, the answer on which is preferred is
kind of in the gray.

If you expect to have appendices, lots of textual information, and lots of pictures, I highly
recommend utilizing single spacing. In this case, double-spacing take up too much space,
which collectively lose you a couple pages of extra graphics, tables, and information that may
push your bid over the top for a win. Remember, more content and covering all the criteria will
be crucial to a win.

⌘ Conclusion
There are rules of thumbs, but the evaluation of bids at times can be a bit tricky. Every year,
there are different sets of people with different viewpoints who votes for a winning bid.
Sometimes, bids that lack finesse in the graphic design department won, and yet, sometimes
bids that were professionally designed won.

I always use this phrase, but one of the best ways to amplify your chances of winning is
covering your bases, making sure that you try to strengthen all facets of your bids (from the
graphic design to the content that fulfills your required criteria).

And of course, whatever you are bidding for, that school or individual or program needs to be
something that your RHA, NRHH, and school are proud of. Confidence is key, and you should
hold nothing back to tell the region and the nation all about your school, individual, RHA,
NRHH, or program that you are bidding for.

You must believe in what you are bidding in order to win. Furthermore, you should be proud
that your school, RHA, NRHH, individual, or program is being recognized whether you win or
lose, and people will want to emulate your school’s ideas and advance the cause of improving
on-campus residential life. It is a wonderful way of educating others.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 17

 MISCELLANEOUS

We hope that the tips and advice in this guide will help you in the bid writing process. The process
requires a lot of hard work, but it can be fun, especially when you are reflecting on that program or
that experience in the past. Bid writing and designing can actually become a fun experience. There
will be more resources out there to help you design and write great bids on the website:
www.caacurh.nacurh.org

Emergency Bidding Resources Database:

http://www.box.net/shared/r4591xfxse

2010-2011 Regional Board of Directors:

Regional Director Associate Director of Administration & Finance
Laura Imbirowicz Kevin Sutjak
ca_director@nacurh.org ca_adaf@nacurh.org

Associate Director of NRHH RCC for Bidding

Vicki Forcina Steven H. Le
ca_nrhh@nacurh.org ca_bidding@nacurh.org

RCC for Resources Development RCC for Special Projects

Curtis Clark Chelsea Hudson
ca_resources@nacurh.org ca_special@nacurh.org

RCC for NRHH Development RCC for Presidential Relations & RHA Development
Samantha Creange Zach Steinmetz
ca_nrhhdev@nacurh.org ca_presidential@nacurh.org

2010 Regional Conference Chairperson 2011 No-Frills Conference Chairperson

Samantha Creange Bailey Box
screange@umd.edu boxbl@muohio.edu

Regional Advisor
Grant Walters
ca_adviser@nacurh.org

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE: GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND WRITING BIDS 18