h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Here in the States, a "townie" is a local person that lives in a college town. For example, Cornell University is located in Ithaca, NY. Therefore, a Cornell student would refer to someone born and raised in Ithaca a "townie."

Freshman year of college I was a townie that attended SUNY Cortland, i.e. I lived in town as opposed to being from Lon Guyland like most of the students.

Notes: SUNY stands for State University of New York, which has campuses all over the state. Lon Guyland is the way I hear most natives pronounce Long Island (that long bit of land that sticks out from NYC).