Profile of a School Shooter: Ingredient 1 - Popularity and Invisibility

According to the Secret Service study, 71% of school shooters reported feeling "persecuted, bullied, threatened, attacked or injured by others," with some of the bullying classified as "long-standing and severe."

Many of those who committed school shootings also targeted females to a large degree. Some were girls that did not return their affections, many whom they described as snotty and stuck-up.

Columbine shooters journal entries specifically called some of these girls "Christian snobs." Real or not, it seems they felt rejected by these girls for one reason or another - socially, romantically, and even religiously.

The Columbine school shooters planned what they considered their revenge for two years. They had started with desired "kill lists" but most of the people on the list had graduated the year before. It's clear that these boys did not "just snap." Their rage did not weaken or dissipate, and they continued with their plan anyhow.

Why did they target innocent students? During the shooting they were reported to have called out those "in white hats" and asked several female students about their religious beliefs prior to shooting them.

We still don't know "why" they did it, we will never know "why," but they left us a few clues.

Take a moment to think about the men we consider "proper" role models in our society. For a refresher, walk through the hallways of any American high school on an average school day. Who are the guys who get the girls? Who are the guys who get the most attention from the staff? Who gets the most recognition in school? What do you see in the trophy case?

Those who do conform to our ideals of manhood are rewarded. They get more girls, they get more recognition, and they get more breaks.

Small town schools are often dominated by a strong jock culture. I have not been to a local sporting event since I was in high school, but even I know who is doing well in what sport. The status of our athletes is often front page news. The closest thing we have to local celebrities are our sports stars.

Small town schools serve as far more than places to educate our children. Our schools are the social center of our community. We have game days, potluck fundraisers, and school performances. We don't just go for the sports, we go for the socialization and the bonding. It is a place we can come together for a common goal.

Those who grew up in small towns can attest to the fervor in which the community responds to the local athletic programs. We tend to be invested in our schools and our students to a stronger degree than we would be in a larger city. We are just as fascinated by our local celebrities as most people are with the professional versions. We follow their careers after school, throughout college, and beyond.

In the social hierarchy of young adulthood, jocks are king. That jock culture tends to permeate everything that happens in the small town school. For a child who is not good at sports, he has little or no chance of setting himself apart when compared to the jocks on the front page of the newspaper every week.

At Columbine High School, the shooters raged about the special treatment of the jocks. Less popular students expressed frustration about the jocks being let off time after time after committing serious offenses. There were complaints of sexual advances and even assaults being ignored until the victims were forced to leave school. Kids who were bullied said they were told to suck it up, while teachers and staff looked the other way.

It is far too easy for these young kids to get lost in the culture of popularity. To convince themselves that the invisibility they feel in school will follow them for the rest of their lives.

Many of the kids who either committed shooting sprees specifically singled out jocks in their writings. When looking for someone to blame for their troubles with invisibility, it seems they chose the most visible kids in school.