Adelphia Scandal free essay sample

Adelphia was founded in 1952 by John Rigas and his brother Gus Rigas in Coudersport, Pennsylvania with the purchase of their first cable franchise for $300. After 20 years, the Rigas brothers incorporated their company under the name Adelphia which derived its name from a Greek word which means brothers, an apt corporate title for a business that would employ generations of the Rigas family. Adelphia was a cable television company and built its success on a strong commitment to customer care; and because of this commitment, a glorious growth spree would follow. By 1998, Adelphia passed the two million-customer milestone and served approximately 5.6 million cable television customers nationwide. The company made significant strides in product development and the implementation of fiber optic technology and expanded their home and business offerings to include digital cable, local and long distance telephone services, messaging, enhanced data, high-speed Internet and video services . John Rigas managed Adelphia from its corporate headquarters in Coudersport, PA. We will write a custom essay sample on Adelphia Scandal or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page His brother Gus sold his interest in Adelphia in 1983. And after some time, Johns sons Michael, Timothy and James, serve as executive vice presidents, directors and principal stockholders. John built Adelphia on a strong commitment to family, community, quality service and customer care which became the core values and culture of the company. The Evolution of Adelphia In August of 1986, Adelphia Communications went public. Its first three years were focused on generating revenue by increasing its customer base through mergers and acquisitions. Although the companys profitability had suffered as a result of the ambitious expansion, its revenue-generating capabilities had not. From the $30 million generated in sales during its first year, annual sales shot up to $131 million in 1988. Adelphia continued to make its presence known by making several important acquisitions of other cable systems such as the Suburban Buffalo System from Comax Telcom Corp., the South Dade System from Americable Associates, Ltd., New Castle System from Cablentertainment, Inc., and Jones Intercable which was the third largest cable system operator in New York during that time. Moreover, Adelphia entered into a partnership with unaffiliated parties to form Olympus Communications in southeast Florida which became a powerful money-making business as it served roughly 250,000 subscribers in West Palm Beach area. Adelphia was performing admirably and continued to expand by making other acquisitions and consolidation maneuvers through 1999 and 2000, bringing its subscriber base up to an impressive 5.5 million. Though the company was heavily indebted after the succession of major purchases of other cable companies, equipment, and infrastructures, analysts were looking favorably on Adelphia as late as January 2002, noting that the company was well positioned for acquisition or merger with another major cable company. The Discovery of the Fraud Oren Cohen, a high-yield-bond analyst for Merrill Lynch had followed Adelphia for a decade and thought there was something about the familys spending that didnt add up. Hed noticed that the Rigases were buying their own stock aggressively, but he couldnt figure out how they were paying for it. They didnt appear to have the cash themselves. John Rigas made $1.4 million in 2000. Michael, Tim, and James each took home $237,000. The Rigases didnt have any sources of income outside Adelphia. They never sold their stock, and it didnt pay a dividend. Cohen was pretty sure their private cable systems werent throwing off cash. But every time Cohen tried to get an explanation, Adelphia rebuffed him. On March 27, 2002, however, Adelphia officials disclosed $2.3 billion in previously unrecorded debt incurred through co-borrowings between Adelphia and other Rigas family entities under the umbrella of the familys private trust, Highland Holdings. Under these loan agreements, the Rigas entities were responsible for repaying the debt, but if they were unable to do so, Adelphia would be liable. Cohen was astounded to see the footnote disclosure and pressed Tim Rigas for details at the end of a conference call that day. Things in Coudersport quickly spun out of control as shareholders asked for clarity and transparency. The revelations and the investigation that followed sent the company spiraling deeper and deeper into a scandal that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) eventually called, one of the most extensive financial frauds ever to take place at a public company . The stock continued to fall and on May 15, 2002 John Rigas resigned as chairman and CEO.

Impearlism essays

Impearlism essays Prior to the arrival of the United States in China, most of the Chinese populations were farmers who farmed rice fields in the countryside. Production was good, children respected their elders, and the Chinese culture was maintained. But as the century passed, their native society was either destroyed or replaced. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the United States pursued an aggressive policy of expansionism, extending its political and economic influence around the globe. The U.S attempted to gain influence in China, but were not entirely successful. The purpose of this paper is to inform about imperialism and how the United States took correct action in becoming an imperialistic nation. During the actual century of Western Imperialism, the Chinese economy was crushed; but when the wars were over, a new and better economy had formed. The wars China fought with foreign countries were costly and left the Chinese government in dept, especially since nearly all the wars and battles, including the Boxer Rebellion, fought were defeats for the Chinese. Following each defeat, China was forced to sign an agreement, such as the Peace of Peking following the Boxer Rebellion, which usually led to the Chinese paying large sums of money to foreign countries, or China being cheated in trades. But as tension and conflicts diminished, the U.S style economy was brought to China, which was generally quite successful. China was introduced to a better banking system, an export market, trade with the rest of the world, and new innovations that allowed better production of crops and other things. So in spite of the economic disaster during the 19th century, Imperialism actually significan tly improved the Chinese economy. The social ideas and religious practices of the Chinese were replaced with Christianity, brought by the U.S. But despite these loses, we also did a favor or two for China. We introduced unseen innovations to the...

Event at Herrington country park ( Sunderland , uk ) Essay

Event at Herrington country park ( Sunderland , uk ) - Essay Example In addition, the park provides a good space for children entertainment as well as an ample space for open air concerts for most parts of the North East of Sunderland (Hoyle, 2002). Based on the possibility of the Herrington Country Park to host a myriad of events, this paper is going to propose and explore the possibilities of the park to host other new events. On this basis, the paper is going to present wedding events as a new type of events that should be hosted by Herrington Country Park. Weddings are the most cherished events by many people around the world. Wedding events always need to be conducted in pristine as well as serene environments (Jones, 2008). They always need to be conducted in places that have aesthetic values as well as beautiful environmental backgrounds. Wedding events always need places with cool atmospheres, spaciousness and lots of natural freshness. In this regard, it is always critical to conduct wedding events in such places where recreation activities are available. Herrington Country Park offers the best environment that meets all the above descriptions for a wedding event. However, it is critical to note that there are several issues that may present big challenges towards staging the wedding events in such an environment (Hoyle, 2002). One of the difficulties in staging such events is inadequacy of finances. This may limit a number of operations in the planning and management of the event. In addition, site zoning problems may also affec t the successful staging of the wedding events in the park. This may be a problem if an experienced and well trained personnel in event management was neither consulted nor hired. This may present staging challenges. However, it is critical to note that Herrington Country Park is an ideal place to hold wedding events. For the success of the park to hold wedding evens, there are several ways that people can be informed. The wedding events in the Herrington

XBUS San Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

XBUS San - Assignment Example A shared factor is lowly working settings. This is more prevalent in factories where the employer places a major emphasis on getting a product and hardly cares for how his employees needs. Their working conditions are more often than not despicable and therefore a conflict between the two cannot be averted. Poor communication between the employer and employee is also a common source of misunderstanding between an employer and employee. In most cases, the way a person communicates is actually the source of conflict. Many would believe that a certain message has been passed across when it is the inverse. This could be due to a person’s way of expressing themselves, where one is comfortable and the other struggles to express their ideas. This is a major pointer that leads to conflict in the work place. Increased workload albeit is a major source of conflict. This is mostly by the employers where they fail to respect the agreement that the employees have signed. More workload without an increase in the amount of money one is paid definitely leads to a misunderstanding. It is only rational that a person is paid for what they have signed up for, and that the employees respect the initial terms that their employees had signed against. This makes one avoid petty issues and conflict that could have otherwise been avoided. The law has come a long way in trying to tame the current otherwise hostile working environment. With the inclusion of laws such as the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex and national origin. This has helped to level the playing ground and reduce the level of prejudice between an employer and employee. The U.S Code 158 also states the rights, dos and don’ts in relation to labor practices by an employer. This code helps to ensure that the employees are well protected and that their lives are in no way at a risk at

Analysis of Bacteria Strains: Phonotypical Tests

Analysis of Bacteria Strains: Phonotypical Tests Kunthavai Jeevananthan Bacterial Identification Aims: To analyse and identify 10 different strains of bacteria by conducting 19 different tests phonotypical tests. Bacteria also known as eubacteria are microorganisms that are invisible to the naked eye but exist in virtually all environments in the world. Bacteria are classified as part of the Monera kingdom which includes archaebacteria and cyanobacteria. Most bacteria are pathogenic or disease causing however not all bacteria are harmful as there are a number of bacteria that can be found in the human body that have positive benefit to their hosts such as help digest food, secrete hormones, chemicals and vitamins required in cell metabolism and even fight off other harmful bacteria. Bacteria exist in various rod, spiral and spherical shapes and are more numerous than any other living organisms. It is important to be able to identify microorganisms in medical clinic in order to help selection of antibodies. Some pharmaceutical products are also made using bacteria therefore many unknown and unidentified bacteria may be useful in the clinical industries. The taxonomy or a particular bacterial c haracteristic can be used to identify similarities that show relationships with disease related descriptions (Janda and Abbott, 2002). Various laboratory tests have been developed that are based on the type of nutrients a bacterium can grow on, the kind of toxins or waste products they produce or how much variation in growth temperature they can tolerate and their morphology can be used to distinguish closely related strains of bacteria. Rapid test kits have also been developed to identify bacteria in the Enterobacteriaceae genera and other gram negative bacteria. Phonotypical approaches of identifying bacteria does not always provide sufficient information to set taxonomic boundaries between different species the repetition of some phenotypic characteristics make it difficult to separate them. Genotyping is however is more precise when it comes to differentiating bacteria within species that lead to the development of DNA hybridisation. This is a technique used measure the similarities in sequences between the DNA of an isolate and a known bacteria. Before conducting a phonotypical bacterial identification it is important to have a pure culture of the bacteria that needs to be identified so that all components of the cells have grown from a single cell and they are clones of one another also known as Holy Grail (Barrow and Feltham, 1993). The bacterial colonies formed for different types of bacteria have different cultural characteristics on agar plates known as colony morphology these include pigments, size edge, pattern, opacity and shine t herefore macroscopically examining the colonies of bacterial cultures is one of the first important tests in bacterial identification. There may be drawbacks in this technique as the visual interpretation can differ from person to person therefore it might not produce reliable results and also mutations in the bacteria strains occur all the time that may provide slightly different characteristics than normal making difficult or incorrect identification. A number of staining methods can be used to examine the cultures under a microscope such as negative staining which stains the background and leaves the cells clear so that the shape of the bacterial cells, presence of glistening capsule and presence of a diffusive extracellular substance (EPS) around the cell and the arrangement of cells can be determined. Differential staining is a test that divides bacteria into two large groups either gram negative or gram positive. Pink- red staining indicates gram negative bacteria and a blue purple staining shows gram positive bacteria cells. Unevenly stained clear surfaces can be formed on the surface of the bacterial cells during gram staining due to the presence of endospores that can be confirmed using spore stain. Acid fast staining is also used if cells appear long, slender and intertwined in order to confirm the presence of acid fast cells which are bacteria in the genera Mycobacteria and Nocardia that are resistant to gram staining. Oxidase, catalase and the ability of the culture to grow in anaerobic conditions are three tests that are conducted during the first steps of identification. Catalase test is to dip an inoculating needle coated with culture into a droplet of hydrogen peroxide and if the bacteria possesses a catalase enzyme it will breakdown the hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen that effervesce to form foam. Catalase positive bacteria are usually aerobic while catalase negative bacteria are anaerobic. Cytochrome oxidase is another enzyme found normally in the electron transport chains of an aerobic bacteria and this is tested by adding an artificial substrate such as para amino dimethylaniline that will produce a dark red to black product when oxidised (Cullimore, 2000). Alongside these test the cultures can be tested on their abilities to grow under anaerobic conditions which can further divide them into 4 major groups; strictly aerobic, reduced concentrations of oxygen, both aerobic and anaero bic and strictly anaerobic bacteria. Urease synthesis, gelatin hydrolysis and citrate utilisation are tests that can be conducted to narrowly distinguish bacteria further to help identify their genera. Urease is produced the bacterial genera proteus, providentia and morgenella to break down urea into carbon dioxide and ammonia therefore it is a useful test to help distinguish these genera from other gram negative rods during identification. Urease test is carried out by incubating urea broth with samples of gram negative cultures. The presence of ammonia increases the pH hence turning the phenol red indicator to a pink-purple colour for a positive test (Harvey and Champe et al, 2001). The gelatin hydrolysis test identifies the ability of bacteria to produce gelatinases which can help identification of serratia and proteus. The citrate utilisation tests the ability of the bacteria to utilise citrate as its carbon and energy source used mostly to identify gram negative bacteria. Indole, methyl red- Voges- protease test and fermentation of glucose, sucrose and lactose are also test that are conducted to help assist with identification of bacteria. Indole test is preformed to test the ability of bacteria to breakdown amino acid tryptophan and produce indole that can be detected using Kovac’s reagent. This method is important in the identification of gram negative enterobacteria. Methyl red-Voges- Proskauer on the other hand are two tests that are conducted together as they both require the use of the same medium. The methyl red test identifies the ability of the bacteria to carry out mixed acid fermentations whereas the VP test determines whether the bacteria fermenting sugars via the butanediol pathway by testing for the by-product acetoin. These tests are also useful in differentiating between members of the enterobacteria such as E. coli (Wong, 2005). The ability of bacteria to ferment carbohydrates is also a way to discriminate them during identific ation as fewer bacteria are able to use disaccharides like lactose and sucrose as a source of energy. This can be detected by checking for release of gaseous by products and metabolic chemicals that are released during the process of oxidation and fermentation of sugars. These tests described in the context above were carried out under standard conditions and results were recorded. Results Table 1: shows test results for Colony Morphology for 10 unknown bacterial cultures A to J. Table 2: shows test results for 18 different bacterial identification tests for unknown cultures A to J. Urease, indole, citrate, oxidase, methyl red and Voges-Proskauer test were only carried out for gram negative strains of bacteria and the endospores were only tested for gram positive bacteria. Microphotographs showing cell morphologies and gram (+/-) strains for cultures C, D and F are shown in the appendix. For culture C it can be seen that the cells are arranged in â€Å"grape like† structures whereas C is arranged in packets of four. It can also be seen that culture F it can be seen that the cells were single and in chains. Discussion Organism A and B are both gram positive rods that gave positive results for anaerobic, catalase and endospores test however they can both be differentiated as organism B is brown in colour and a glucose fermenter whereas organism A is orange in colour and a non-glucose fermenter. Organism B was in a cooked meat liquid broth which also indicates that the bacterium maybe part of the Clostridium species that have a few pathogenic bacteria that are responsible for food poisoning and tetanus. Organism A is therefore Bacillus Cereus some bacterium in this species are harmless whereas others are pathogenic that may cause foodborne illnesses such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Organism C has the morphology of pale yellow cocci clusters arranged in packets of four. It is a gram positive bacterium that also shows positive results for glucose fermentation and the catalase test show characteristics of Staphylococcus species which include pathogenic bacteria that causes skin infections, pneum onia and food poisoning. Organism C appeared in clusters that were â€Å"grape like† and is also a gram positive cocci and has a positive result for catalase however it does not ferment carbohydrates but shows positive test results for their metabolic chemical produced and hereby conveying characteristics of Micrococcus species these bacteria are very rarely disease causing and if so some may cause chronic cutaneous infections (Breed and Murray, 1957). Organism E has a white flat mycelial morphology and it is a gram positive glucose fermenter therefore it is a part of the Streptomyces genera that are known to inhibit the soil and causes the common scab in root vegetables. Organism F is a clear gram negative rod bacterium that is glucose and lactose fermenter and produces metabolic chemicals for glucose, lactose. It also produced negative results for tests urease, gelatin, oxidase, Voges-Proskauer (VP) and indole however it showed positive results for catalase, citrate and methyl red and anaerobic tests as shown in figure 2. Analysing these results organism F can be identified as Escherichia coli that consist of many different strains some of which can cause urinary tract infections, diarrhoea, anaemia and even kidney failure. Organism G is a gram negative rod that produces metabolic chemicals for all three carbohydrates glucose, lactose and sucrose however bubbles were only present for lactose and sucrose. It also shows positive results for tests urease, indole anaerobic and VP but negative results for catalase, oxidase, gelatin and methyl red. Organism G showed similar results to organism F however unlike organism F it is urease positive therefore it can be a bacterium from the Proteus genera that also contain a few pathogenic bacteria that can cause urinary tract infections, kidney stones and cystitis. Organism H is only a glucose fermenter but does not produce any metabolic chemicals. It demonstrates positive test results for urease, gelatin, citrate, anaerobic catalase and oxidase but negative for both methyl red and VP as well as indole tests. It is possible that this bacterium maybe be a part of the Pseudomonas genera with different bacterial strains that may cause respiratory tract infections, dermatitis and bone and joint infections. Organism I is also a gram negative rod and had a clear pigmentation on an agar medium that is a glucose fermenter but however it produces metabolic chemicals for glucose, lactose and sucrose. It also produces positive results when being tested for citrate, anaerobic, catalase and methyl red but not for urease, gelatin, indole, oxidase and VP this indicates that organism I could be Salmonella typhimurium a pathogenic bacteria that causes gastroenteritis that leads to diarrhoea. Organism J is another gram negative bacterium that produces no bubbles for glucose, lactose or sucrose fermentation but produces metabolic chemicals for glucose and sucrose. It is also positive for gelatin, citrate, anaerobic, catalase and VP however it is negative for urease, indole, oxidase and methyl red tests. The red pigmentation of the bacterial culture and the other tests results indicates that organism J maybe Serratia marcescens that are associated with many different types of diseases some of which in clude bacteraemia, sepsis and meningitis. In order to conduct more specific identification of these bacteria further tests can be carried out that will help to distinguish each bacterium more accurately. Other tests that can be carried out include starch hydrolysis, lipid hydrolysis, motility (SIM) deeps, beta galactosidase, nitrate, coagulase, mannitol salt, osmotic pressure and haemolysis. References Barrow, G. I., Feltham, K. A. R. (1993). Crowan and Steel’s manual for the identification of medical bacteria: classification and nomenclature. 1-6. United Kingdom: Cambridge university press. Breed, R. S., Murray, G. D. E., Smith, N. R. (1957). Bergey’s manual of determinative bacteriology. 695- 800. United States of America: Baltimore Williams and Wilkins co. Cullimore, D. R. (2000). Practical atlas for bacterial identification: initial stages of the identification of the bacterial culture. 1-7. United States of America: CRC press LLC; Harvey, R. A., Champe, P.C., Fisher, B.D. (2001). Microbiology: identification of bacteria. 24-27. United Stated of America: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. Janda, J.M., Abbott, S. L. (2002). Bacterial identification for publication: when enough is enough? Journal of clinical microbiology. Vol. 40 no. 6, (1887-1891). Wong, T. (2005). Introduction to microbiology laboratory exercises for Allied Heath students: The IMViC tests. 48-50. United States of America: Author House. Appendix Culture C Culture D Culture F

Family Guide to Prescription Drugs Essay

The five rights (5 Rs) need to be followed when administering any medications: right patient, right medication, right dose, right time and the right route. Venipuncture procedure for the purpose of establishing peripheral venous access and for obtaining blood sample for laboratory tests follow the standards of practice framework. It is mandatory that health care professionals have and sustain in good status, all licenses, permits, and certificates required by law as well as follow the standards of practice imposed. (2) Explain the repercussions that could arise from violating these standards. Violating these standards will lead to adverse patient reactions to the drug administered; worst case will be death to the patient involved. Investigations regarding the medication error will result to fines/penalties, license revocations and even jail time (Sen, et al, 2005). Sadly, accidental deaths due to medication errors as a result of failure to follow these standards are not unusual cases in health care practice (Medical Mistakes 1999). (3) What are the responsibilities of a person in your health care position during a code arrest? If signs of patient’s condition/ state is worsening rapidly (i.e. increased respiratory distress and decreased oxygen saturation, call a code. The person who found the unresponsive patient should call the code right away and initiate CPR. It is important to know the status code of the patient before anything else, whether the patient has a full code, partial code or has a DNR status (Do Not Resuscitate) (Turjanica, 1998). (4) Discuss the repercussion that could arise, both for the patient and you, in regards to injection of contrast media. Intravenous injection of contrast media will be done/ administered by a qualified physician or trained radiologic nurse. An informed consent will be obtained from the patient prior to the said procedure. This consent has to be signed by the patient, the guardian or patient’s power of attorney. Severe reactions to the procedure leading to cardiopulmonary arrest/ death are beyond the health care team’s capacity. As long as there were no mistakes when the procedure was done, there will be no repercussions. Emergency apparatus and pharmaceuticals are available for any emergencies that may arise during the after the procedure.   (5) Explain the organization of the information supplied in the Physicians Desk Reference (PDR). PDR provides information regarding prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, herbal medications, health conditions, types of surgeries and even treatment options for a number of health issues. They also provide drug to drug interactions when one is taking a number of medications for different health problems.   (6) What are the benefits of physicians using PDAs in ordering prescriptions for their patients? Physicians will gain advantage when using PDRs as it will provide and supply them with the latest medication/ drug products available, concise drug information and multi-drug interaction checker. Daily news updates are also available thru these PDRs. (7) Compare the ratings of addictive drugs on the controlled drug standard. Give an example of each category. Examples of addictive drugs are nicotine, heroines and cocaine. Controlled drugs are medications taken illegally when not being prescribed by physicians. Examples of these drugs are analgesics like Tylenol with Codeine, Oxycontin and Morphine. Presently, all these controlled drugs are addictive.   Research is ongoing nowadays for the new compound ACV1 which is more powerful than Morphine but is not addictive at all (Good, 2002). (8) What are some reasons the imaging professional should chart carefully? In which ways is charting accomplished? Imaging professionals need to chart carefully and completely for legal purposes. Documentation on any health related procedures will be used in court if something happens to the patient. Reactions of patient after any procedure are also documented in patient care notes and on the occurrence form. (9) Which examinations require charting and how is this done? Any procedure pertaining to health care needs to be documented/ charted. As much as possible, the documentation needs to be clear and concise. It should also be reflecting the interventions done and the patient’s reaction/ responses to it. The type of contrast media, the amount given, the site and the time should be documented. The timing of events and the treatments/ interventions done in any emergencies during and after the procedure should be documented concisely as well. To time events, the use of one timepiece is necessary in order to establish consistencies. Reference Good, Brian (2002). Something for the pain. Men’s Health, 17.9, p 36. Medical Mistakes. (1999). KRT Interactive Hot Topics. Sen, S., Chini, E, Nunes, E & Brown, M. (2005). Complications after unintentional intra-arterial injection of drugs: risks, outcomes and management strategies. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, Vol 80, 783. Turjanica, M. A. Anatomy of a code; how do you feel at the start of a code blue? Nursing, Vol 27, p34.

High School and Felicia’s Life Essay

A photo of Felicia with notes from her classmates.   The friend, Briana Torres, at 16 a year older and a grade ahead of Felicia, hugged her and walked her to sixth-period English class, the girls’ arms clasped around each other’s shoulders. On the way, Felicia cheered up enough to laugh at a joke, and make a joke of her own. But there were signs of unraveling. Late Monday night, she had posted a brief Twitter message: â€Å"I cant, im done, I give up.† After school Wednesday, Felicia walked to the Staten Island Railway station where many students board trains home. She waited impatiently for the train, and as it approached, she hurled herself backward onto the tracks. A friend grabbed her arm, but she twisted free. She was pronounced dead that evening. By the time her friends began to congregate in the hospital waiting room, posting messages on Twitter and Facebook in what would become a flurry of online speculation about her death, most had pinpointed a cause: Felicia had been bullied, they said, tormented by football players on Tottenville’s undefeated team. Some said she was teased because she had piercings and lived in foster care. Others said players had spread sexual boasts about her over the weekend, after Tottenville’s 16-8 victory over Port Richmond High School. To many friends, she appeared to weather the swirl of innuendo with her usual confidence. â€Å"She never really reached out for help; she was a really tough person,† Briana said Thursday, wearing a small tribute on her left wrist — an â€Å"RIP Felicia† inked in purple. â€Å"When I dropped her off at class, I wasn’t really worried about her.† Felicia had reported the taunts to an administrator, who arranged mediation sessions between Felicia and the boys she said were harassing her. Police are now investigating her death. Neither they nor the Education Department nor the school would comment on the bullying allegations. There was already little that was easy in Felicia’s life. Friends described her childhood as a patchwork of loss and instability: both her parents died when she was young, and she d isliked living with her aunt, said Kaitlyn Antonmarchi, 15, who said she had been Felicia’s best friend since eighth grade. At one point, Felicia ran away from her aunt’s house with an older man. After she entered the foster system, she bounced in and out of different homes, dyed her dark hair red and sprouted a cluster of piercings. With her latest foster parents, Felicia finally seemed happy and stable, Kaitlyn said. Moving to the other side of Staten Island, she started high school at Tottenville, improved her grades, let the dye wash out and eliminated most piercings. At Friday’s football game, Kaitlyn said: â€Å"She looked happy. She was laughing. It didn’t look like anything was upsetting her at all.† Bullying is common at the school, classmates said, but administrators usually acted to stop it, and it rarely reached the level that Felicia experienced. Tease Felicia, and she would come back with a quick, witty retort, said Alissa Compitello, 17, a senior. â€Å"If you tried to bully her, she’d laugh at you,† she said. â€Å"Somebody must’ve said som ething pretty bad about her for this to happen. They just wouldn’t stop.† On Wednesday, Felicia had asked Karl Geiling, 15, a sophomore at Tottenville, about how his test had gone. He saw her at the train station later. â€Å"I was way down, away from her,† he said. â€Å"All I heard was screams, and then everybody went silent.† At school on Thursday, many students wore black and purple, colors often associated with anti-bullying campaigns, and met with grief counselors. A crowd of about 500 gathered at the station in the evening, many holding candles. Someone had tied purple and black balloons to a chain-link fence overlooking the tracks, with notes and a photo fluttering alongside them. As their classmates created anti-bullying Facebook pages in Felicia’s honor Wednesday night, several football players took to Twitter to protest what they saw as the wholesale tarring of the team, which is a perennial favorite to win the Public School Athletic League championship. At least two seniors have been o ffered scholarships to play Division I college football. â€Å"None of you even no half the story so stop pointing fingers at the football team,† wrote James Munson, a safety on the team and the son of the team’s coach, Jim Munson. Another player, Richy Lam, a senior, said Thursday that many members of the team had not even known Felicia. In New York, an anti-bullying statute signed in 2010, one of numerous laws passed around the country in the wake of teenage suicides, requires schools to develop policies to deter harassment of students by other students, including education programs and disciplinary procedures. Prosecutions for student bullying are rare; perhaps the best-known case is that of Dharun Ravi, who was convicted of bias intimidation and invasion of privacy charges for using a webcam to spy on his Rutgers University roommate, Tyler Clementi, who committed suicide a few days later. Mr. Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in jail. â€Å"Bullying that violates criminal law can be prosecuted criminally, but not as bullying,† said Suzanne B. Goldberg, a law professor at Columbia Law School who directs its Center for Gender and Sexuality Law. Physical violence or threats of physical violence could be prosecuted, she said, â€Å"but what most often happens is that schools and prosecutors try to keep these situations out of criminal court which can be appropriate if the school system takes the incident seriously, punishes the offender and protects the victim.† It is not clear whether anyone will be disciplined in Felicia’s case. For some students, the school’s next challenge is Friday’s football game against the rival Curtis High School team, the last of the season, which may be pushed to Sunday. Felicia was a fan. When Kaitlyn last saw her, she said, she had been planning to cheer Tottenville this weekend. â€Å"She said, ‘Yeah, I’m going,’ † Kaitlyn said. â€Å"And I said, I’ll see you there.† Al Baker and Christopher Maag contributed reporting.