The year after the Columbine shooting, I was in a play called Bang Bang You're Dead about school violence. It was being put on by our town, and a member of the school board worked with the director to coordinate rehearsals. In order to get us into our roles, the director had us each share a story about violence we've experienced at school.

Taking a step back, after Columbine, I was as intrigued as anyone about the shooters. I read all about them online - even accessed Dylan Klebold's website before it was shut down - and decided that if I ever met someone like them (bullied, violent as a result), I would befriend them and hopefully show them that the world isn't full of only bad people.

So when the director asked me about my experience with violence, I told them about a friend I'd made from day 1 of freshman year. He was always angry, rude in class, hung out with the bad kids, etc. In the one class we shared, we'd pass notes about how bad his day was, and I'd try to cheer him up. I told my director (and the rest of the room) how I had no doubt that friend had it in himself to do violence at school.

After rehearsal, the school board rep came up to me and said she needed the name of my friend. I was nervous as hell but knew I didn't have a choice. The next day, the friend wasn't in class. In fact, he never came back. I found out through mutual friends that they'd raided his locker, found drawings of the school blowing up, a hit list, and more. He was put into an alternate school and given counseling. He ended up graduating early, getting his associates degree before any of us had finished our freshman year of college, and became the manager of a local business.

When the school board rep asked for his name, I really thought I was about to ruin the kid's life. In the end, the town actually handled the situation right, and that kid's life was turned around completely.