Marilyn LaCourt

I've been a student of cooperation all my life. Striving to understand and promote cooperation between people-that's my mission.

In 1999, shortly after the tragedy at Columbine, my colleagues and I at Communication Programs, LLC, developed a bully prevention program for seventh- and eighth-grade students. Kosciuszko Middle School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, graciously agreed to host a pilot of our program. Kosciuszko has a culturally and racially mixed student population, and is located in one of Milwaukee's highest crime areas.

The seventh-grade students at Kosciuszko and their teacher taught me a great deal about the dynamics between bullies and victims. Consequently, I was deeply compelled to write a realistic story told from the perspective of both the bullies and the victims as they struggle to find answers to tough questions.

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