Wed, Jan 13, 1971
Pam Arnold is thrilled when she is awarded a scholarship to one of the best art schools in the country. But when Principal Seymour Kaufman thanks Ken Dragen, the head of the English Department, for recommending her for the scholarship, he denies ever having signed her application form.
Wed, Nov 5, 1969
Liz McIntyre is assigned to substitute in the "Preparation for Marriage" class taught by middle-aged Miss Tandy. Liz discovers that the class is based entirely on Miss Tandy reading aloud from a book composed of notes she has compiled over the years, much of which is no longer relevant to her students' lives. Liz decides to put the book aside to lead a discussion among the students -- something the students like so much that they ask for Liz to replace Miss Tandy as the teacher for the class.
Wed, Oct 1, 1969
One of Pete Dixon's fellow history teachers complains about a boy named Harvey Butcher, who continually disrupts his American history class. When Principal Kaufman suggests that they may have to transfer Butcher to another school, Pete Dixon argues that the school administration isn't working with the boy. Kaufman, aided by a suggestion from Alice Johnson, decides instead to reassign him to Pete's history class. Pete initially finds that he's gotten more than he bargained for -- but he also sees a talent for humor and imagination in the boy and tries to find a more productive outlet for it.
Wed, Mar 18, 1970
Over Principal Seymour Kaufman's objections, the school district forces Walt Whitman to accept hundreds of new students on short notice, causing significant unhappiness among the teachers. Kaufman approaches Pete Dixon, who holds an important position with the P.T.A., and asks him not to raise objections about Whitman's new enrollees at the upcoming P.T.A. meeting, but Dixon feels that he must stand up for this fellow teachers -- causing a serious rift in Dixon's relationship with Kaufman.
Wed, Oct 28, 1970
Conflicts develop between two students, Craig Jackson and Brendan Michaels, Craig a short-haired, straight-laced type who respects authority and often exercises it as a hall monitor, and Brendan an easygoing free spirit with long hair who abides authority grudgingly if at all. Tension boil over, however, when the track coach becomes ill and Pete Dixon takes over for the balance of the season. Pete relaxes the discipline and permits students with long hair to play for the team -- including Brendan Michaels, who is an excellent pole vaulter. This doesn't sit well, however, with Craig Jackson, who abruptly quits as the team captain because of the constant clowning that Brendan brings with him onto the team.
Wed, Oct 15, 1969
A city-wide flu epidemic causes so many teachers to call in sick that the very real possibility of having to close Walt Whitman High looms for Principal Seymour Kaufman. In the meantime, Kaufman's son Martin unexpectedly shows up from a year and-a-half stint in the Peace Corps in Uganda. Martin's background as a teacher comes in handy because of the shortage of teachers caused by the epidemic -- but his continuing presence at Whitman also brings up unresolved emotional issues between him and his father.
Wed, Sep 17, 1969
In the pilot episode (which opens as essentially a continuation of the scenes in the opening credits), Pete Dixon teaches history in Room 222 at Walt Whitman High School. Principal Seymour Kaufman introduces Pete to Alice Johnson, a perky but painfully insecure student teacher. Pete's most enthusiastic student is Richie Lane, who goes so far as to dress a lot like Pete and even takes roll in his absence. But Guidance Counselor Liz McIntire has discovered some disturbing news about Richie -- the home address he submitted is fake, suggesting that he may not live in the school district, and therefore might be ineligible to keep attending Whitman.