PHILADELPHIA -- To help soothe freshman jitters for the newly minted high school graduates heading to the University of Pennsylvania, there's nothing like meeting your fellow freshman, even if they are from all over the U.S. and around the world. And Pennster is the way to do it.

Pennster is a special Web site that connects incoming Penn freshmen, enabling them to connect virtually to their future classmates.

Launched in June, the site has prompted an astounding response, with almost 1,900 registered users  -- more than 75 percent of the class -- and 300 postings daily.  Nearly 18,000 posts have been made to the public discussion boards, some with photos.  The new Penn freshmen want to know about Philadelphia, their college houses, meeting others in real time via the chat room and each others' lives.  Threads are running on topics as diverse as Philly slang, the war in Iraq, lacrosse at Penn, riding a unicycle, the meaning of life and extra-long twin beds.   

Users can also send and receive personal messages and they certainly have.  More than 14,000 personal messages have been sent between users. Some students have planned gatherings in their home areas, all over the country.

Also chatting with the new freshmen are faculty masters, house deans, resident assistants and graduate assistants, staffers from the Office of College houses and Academic Services and a special group of trained upperclassmen called PHINS, Peers Helping Incoming New Students.  PHINS answer questions, allay fears and provide oversight for the mostly peer-oriented conversations.  Security measures and even etiquette are important:  personal email addresses are never posted and users cannot post anonymously.

This inaugural version of Pennster will conclude in September, when the class as a whole is on campus, settled in and chatting face-to-face.

###

Editor's note:  A demonstration of Pennster with Troy Majnerick, coordinator of Penn's new student orientation, can be arranged.