For immediate release

The Bonfire Coalition released its research on college and university
bonfires around the country today. The report, titled "A Report on the
State of Collegiate Bonfires in the United States: Cost, Safety and
Insurability" was presented to Texas A&M University President Robert M.
Gates last Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2003.

"Almost 25% of the colleges and universities contacted burn some form of
bonfire," said David Nelson, research chair. "There are built in a
variety of different ways, but most college bonfires do have some
commonalities."

Pallets are the most popular fuel source for bonfires, however, Dartmouth
College, an Ivy League school, uses harvested lumber for its bonfire.

The Bonfire Coalition studied all colleges and universities in Texas. It
also contacted the service academies, senior military schools, and
universities in two major athletic conferences.

"It is interesting to find out how many schools burn a bonfire," said Marc
Barringer, co-chair of the Bonfire Coalition. "As our research shows, none
of the surveyed universities have experienced a student death or serious
injury."

In the wake of the 1999 tragedy, many Texas schools reviewed their own
bonfire procedures. Tarleton State, a Texas A&M System university, and
Texas Tech have written manuals that guide the building of their bonfires.

Tarleton State uses pallets to build a 50-foot bonfire that resembles the
wedding cake structure of recent Aggie Bonfires.

"Tarleton State's center pole is only 55 feet with 5 feet buried," said
Nelson. "When the top of the pole is no longer visible, they stop building
their bonfire."

"This is one simple method that can be used to enforce safety standards,"
said Nelson. "In the wake of the 1999 Texas A&M accident, university
administrators have become proactive in managing the risk of student-built
bonfires."

Although the Bonfire Coalition is an advocacy groups that favors the return
of Aggie Bonfire to Texas A&M's campus, the survey was conducted
objectively. It focused on cost, safety, and insurability of collegiate
bonfire projects.

"Our research is academically honest and unbiased," said Ryan Kirkpatrick,
co-chair of the Coalition. "The results, not surprisingly, show that an
affordable bonfire can be built that is safe and unique."

Dartmouth College is just one example of how to keep a bonfire unique while
also following established guidelines and rules.

"Each year, engineering students at Dartmouth compete to design the next
years Bonfire," explained Barringer. "The professors supervise the project
to make sure it is safe and within the set guidelines."

"We are not suggesting that Aggies copy anyone else's design just to return
our Bonfire to campus. However, in order to achieve a Bonfire that is
uniquely Aggie, we may have to start with one that isn't."

The full text of the report can be viewed and downloaded at
www.bonfirecoalition.org.