Verhagen, Briggs and bonfire committee co-chairs Amanda Winch '16 and Jose Rodarte-Canales '16 have met every Thursday in October with officials, including Collis Center for Student Involvement advisors Eric Ramsey and Juliann Coombs, Hanover Police and Safety and Security representatives and Greek Letter Organizations and Society Director Wes Schaub, according to Winch.
During the meetings, the group determined the design for the official T-shirts, discussed ways to create a welcoming bonfire environment and coordinated building volunteers, cluster parties, the run around the bonfire and the "freshman sweep," in which freshmen pick each other up from different residential clusters and parade to the Green as a class, the chairs said.
First-year volunteers signed up to construct the bonfire on Oct. 25 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Oct. 26 from 8 a.m. until whenever the bonfire is completed, according to Verhagen. Over 150 freshmen signed up to help construct the bonfire for at least an hour, according to Briggs.
Feyaad Allie '16 said that the unique experience of building a bonfire was what interested him in signing up.
"I think it's a fun way to be with '16s and build a bonfire, which is the kind of experience you never have other than here," he said.
The bonfire will be built according to strict blueprints in order to ensure structural integrity and maximum safety, according to Briggs.
The Thayer School of Engineering design used every year features 33 star-shaped tiers at the base, 22 hexagonal tiers in the middle and 10 square tiers on top, Briggs said.
In 2009, the College revised its bonfire construction process to include large forklifts called lulls so that students do not have to move heavy materials such as wooden beams.
To ensure that the bonfire is as safe as possible, last year's faculty supervisor and bonfire co-chairs decided to reduce the height of the numbers atop the bonfire from eight feet to six feet eight inches this year, according to Briggs.
"In previous years, the numbers have been seen flapping around, and particularly when the numbers are going up as well, when the lull lifts them up that's particularly dangerous," Verhagen said.
The build chairs will also ensure that no mistakes are made in the bonfire's construction, Briggs said. Last year, the hexagonal portion of the bonfire was built incorrectly, causing the numbers on the top of the bonfire to be off-center, he said.
Last year, freshmen building the bonfire fell behind schedule and rushed to finish on time, according to Briggs. This year's build chairs worked to ensure that the building progress is on track.
Student organizations and freshman residential clusters were encouraged to continue the tradition of decorating the bonfire panels with signatures, jokes and encouraging messages, Verhagen said.
Allie, a resident of the East Wheelock cluster, said he was excited to help decorate a panel representing his floor.
"This is kind of one of those coming together events that builds a strong community," he said.
For the social aspect of the bonfire, the chairs worked with a $3,000 budget to cover food and entertainment for residential cluster parties and the post-bonfire celebration, which will feature cider, donuts and a dance party, Rodarte-Canales said.
The dance party will showcase a student DJ and start earlier than in past years in order to decrease competition with parties at Greek houses, according to Winch.
"We're trying to publicize it as something you can do prior to going out so we can hopefully get a better turnout," she said.
To improve sustainability this year, freshmen running around the bonfire will be provided water from large jugs owned by the athletic department rather than water bottles, according to Winch.
An exit "tunnel" will also be put in place this year to ensure that freshmen do not feel trapped in the circle designated for running, according to Rodarte-Canales.
The bonfire and build chairs and the 2016 Class Council will lead the freshman sweep, Winch said. The bonfire and build chairs will also light the bonfire, she said.
The bonfire chairs designed T-shirts for the event through Vox Sportswear, a student-run apparel business. The shirts went on sale to students on Oct. 24, Rodarte-Canales said.
Many freshmen said they are excited to take part in the bonfire because it is an integral Dartmouth tradition.
"The bonfire is something you obviously don't want to miss," William Persampieri '16 said. "Everybody has a story about what happened [at] their bonfire. It spices things up."
