Anne Archer plays willful and sultry Patricia Emerson, whose daughter Becky is a student in an English class taught by Colin Flynn. At a home-tutoring session for Becky, Mrs. Emerson comes on to Flynn. It's an attempted seduction that really heats up when Emerson---who says she's related to the poet-essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson---begins interpreting Emily Dickinson's ""The Sea"" for him as a poem rich in sexual metaphors. Elsewhere, Winslow's basketball coach denies charges that he illegally recruited a star player---who's enamored of Harper's daughter.

Moral and ethical dilemmas surround Flynn's adulterous affair; the college recruitment of Winslow's basketball star; and the plight of a pregnant teen.

Guber's speech team star has an issue, Russell decides on a college, while mixed signals rattle Colin as his affair comes to a close.

American Idol songbird Tamyra Gray, who lost the competition but won the hearts of TV audiences, makes her TV dramatic debut. Gray plays a shy Winslow student named Aisha, whose solo in an empty study hall overwhelms Marylin. So she persuades Aisha to audition for the upcoming school musical. The tryout's a disaster, but, thanks to Marylin's confidence-building, Aisha gets another shot. In other storylines, the battering of a gay teen prompts Guber to take a stand for tolerance; and a quickening crush on a fellow student ruffles a schoolgirl genius---who's 12.