Joe prepares for his first day as the new principal of Benjamin Harrison High School, but not before agreeing to undergo marriage counseling with his wife, Carol. Mary Caitlin's motorcycle is stolen by a punk, who rides it right out of the school. Joe overhears that the previous principal had a nervous breakdown. Gus, believing Jack is to be promoted to principal, tries unsuccessfully to persuade Jack to let him teach science. Jack believes it himself and begins preparing for his new duties before finding out the bad news. After observing things, Joe concludes that most of the school's problems can be attributed to the teachers, so he holds a faculty meeting and threatens the others to do their jobs -- or else. A board official, Connie, warns Joe that the complaints are racking up against him and he should keep a lower profile. Joe doesn't listen, and continues to tick off the faculty members with his ""improvements,"" then stirs up the hornet's nest by assigning Harry and Sara to work o

Jack has a physical for his wife's insurance policy, and is told he's in poor health. Harry unloads a troublemaker, Johnny, in Sara's class, because none of the other English teachers want him. Johnny walks out, and Sara tells him to never come back. Joe finds a way to get rid of Mr. Kaczmarek -- if his students don't pass a test Joe plans to personally give them, so long. Matthew follows Mary Caitlin, and discovers a secret she was trying to keep from the rest of the faculty -- she's participating in a church-sponsored program for runaway youths. Charlie has it out with Harry because he's stuck working in the rubber room pending an investigation. Mary Caitlin tries to no avail to help out one of the runaways, Sandy, who's got severe issues concerning her parents. Johnny begs Harry to give him another chance in Sara's class -- at least she was honest enough to say she doesn't like him. Mary Caitlin is angry to find out Matthew followed her, and confesses that she hasn't spoken to her m

Harry faces the impending consequences of Johnny's untruthful complaint against him, which the other students believe. A former friend of Matthew's, Whittington, comes to Matthew with a proposition: the chance to see the inner-workings of smart kids in a good school. Joe has no choice but to suspend Harry and put him to work in the administration office until the hearing. Suspecting Mr. Reese to be the actual culprit -- which he is -- Joe requests Johnny's father meet with him to talk about the incident. Joe and Carol discuss whether or not they should keep the baby. Charlie has a good laugh at Harry's expense now that they're both in the rubber room. Sara blasts Joe for suspending Harry, but Joe turns the conversation around and asks Sara to step up while Jack and Harry are out of commission. Jack leaves the hospital a poor man. Whittington shows Matthew how well-behaved and sharp (and smug) the suit-wearing students at Darwin Prep are. Back at Benjamin Harrison, Matthew tries to conv

A flu epidemic slims down the teacher population, including the basketball coach, so Joe puts Gus back in charge of the team. When Jack pesters Joe about wanting to be coach, Joe gets him off his back by telling him he's nominated him for teacher of the year. Roz returns to school in the wake of her sister's suicide, and turns to Mr. Turner, her sister's favorite teacher, for answers. Joe and Carol become the newest members of their condo's association, and invite the committee to their place to hold their latest meeting. But when they find out from their neighbors that the entire group hates children and don't want them in the building, Carol announces that she's pregnant, and throws them all out. An enraged Roz attacks a female classmate for saying that Mr. Turner was caught cheating. With the hearing looming, Sara asks Harry if he's having second thoughts about turning him in. Mary Caitlin is hot for Guy, but doesn't know how to tell him she likes him, so she begs Matthew to do it f

An angry Joe holds a parent/teacher meeting, because 30% of the students are terminal truants. Unfortunately, most of the parents take after their kids. Matthew assumes he's lost Roz when he sees her skipping school. With Harry's case not going well, Sara offers up the services of her attorney ex-boyfriend, Jeffrey, whom Harry can't stand. Sara gets stuck with an incompetent, irascible, middle-aged student helper, Margo Bleiweiss, whose idea of teaching is to throw things at the class. A social services guy, O'Connor, fills Joe in on how one of the truants only shows up on days when he has to have a welfare form signed. Matthew tracks Roz down at her new job as a diner waitress to persuade her to come back, but Roz says her mother needs the extra cash. A student is killed after getting hit by a car during school hours, prompting Joe to look for a way to force the parents to get their spawn to stop playing hooky. O'Connor's comment gives Joe an idea -- stop signing all the truants' welf

An illiterate student carrying a bomb takes Jack hostage, and Carol gives birth.