PENDLETON — Their job is to make sixth-graders feel welcome at Starpoint Middle School. But on Friday, the school’s WEB Crew welcomed every student, plus a few special guests, to the gymnasium.

Billed as Starpoint’s first “academic pep rally,” teachers, administrators and students filled the gym for a few fun activities Friday afternoon, such as a balloon relay and teacher makeover. But there were times when teacher, WEB coordinator and master of ceremonies Christian Johnson, along with administrators, brought up the importance of making good choices, such as doing your best in school.

Mixing fun in while getting that message across is just one of the things the Starpoint WEB Crew does. WEB, which stands for Where Everyone Belongs, is a group of eighth-graders who assist incoming sixth-graders in their transition to middle school. WEB is a national program overseen by the Boomerang Project, an education resource company from California.

“The idea is to make the transition more comfortable for sixth-graders, less overwhelming,” said Brian Scully, a middle school teacher and WEB coordinator.

Scully said seventh-graders have to apply in order to serve as WEB leaders for their eighth-grader year. The kids are trained in the summer, then meet their sixth-graders during orientation. There are 40 WEB students who are leading about 200 sixth-graders.

WEB, and its high school counterparts the Link Crew, have been at Starpoint for three years. That means, the eighth-graders on the team now, were the first batch of sixth-graders to have help adjusting to middle school.

Kara Wilcox, 13, is a WEB member, influenced mainly by her experience with the first WEB leaders she met as a new sixth-grader. Wilcox partners with a fellow WEB student as leaders for a group of 10 sixth-graders.

“I really love this,” Wilcox said. “It’s a big adjustment, coming here.”

Wilcox said one of the things the WEB team does is hold an orientation for incoming sixth-graders. WEB leaders give the sixth-graders a tour of the school, provide them with team-building exercises and then serve as role models and advisers during the school year.

“We keep in touch throughout the year,” said Samantha Seeger, 13, another WEB leader. “I don’t think I would know any of them otherwise. We try to be open, if they have any problems they can come to us.”

Seeger’s group has 11 sixth-graders. She said having a WEB leader made adjusting to middle school a lot easier.

“I looked up to them,” Seeger said.

Scully said sixth-graders probably find talking to eighth-graders easier than to adults about certain problems. That’s because the eighth-graders have been there, they can offer help on tasks from organizing a locker to promoting proper study habits.

“Plus it’s cool for a sixth-grader to see an eighth-grader in the hall and say hi,” Scully said.

And it’s good for the eighth-graders, too, he added.

“It’s good for them to show leadership,” Scully said.

Scully and Johnson have been selected as national coaches for the Boomerang Project. This week, the pair will be traveling to Columbus, Ohio, to train other educators about the WEB program, who will, in turn, bring the program back to their schools.

During Friday’s rally, the school welcomed Mark Steenhuis, Frank Resetarits and Luke Wiles of the National Lacrosse League’s Buffalo Bandits. Steenhuis, the NLL’s first multiple All-Star Game MVP and 2008 Transition Player of the Year, told students if they work hard they can succeed at anything.

“It’s very important for you to stay strong; if you do that, I’m sure you guys will overcome all of your problems,” Steenhuis said.