A popular and beloved teacher, Mr. McMahon, has a heart attack and dies at school. A close friend of the deceased, Principal Harper overcomes his own grief to help his students cope with the loss. To make matters worse, it appears that McMahon had been having an affair with a female senior, Karen Fitzgerald.

While Harper struggles to deal with the incident's aftermath and maintain status quo, the students and faculty begin to fall apart. A defiant pupil, Webster, spits on Lauren and she vows to have him expelled. The case becomes more complex, however, when Harper learns that Webster was close to Mr. McMahon and is extremely upset over his death. A disciplinary hearing is held and it's decided that Webster will only be suspended, much to Lauren's disgust.

Meanwhile, the distraught students hold an assembly to deal with their confusion. The kids quickly embrace God as the answer and their meeting turns into a mass prayer rally.

Eventually, Harper and Guber look into McMahon's alleged af

When Coach Riley is fired for withholding information about Buttle's affair, he hires Attorneys Ellenor Frutt and Jimmy Berluti. The stress of the lawsuit has Guber and Harper at each other's throats. Lauren discovers that Harry had dated another co-worker before her. The crossover starts on The Practice S05E14 The Day After (I).

Lauren gets a gun to protect herself from Daniel. Jeremy won't tell Marilyn what happened to his mother. Scott gives Winslow High's first student to get accepted to Harvard an F.

New teachers join the faculty; Lipschultz gets into trouble after giving a student the wrong name; Marla sponsors a club of female students.

A student's illness rattles Senate, who's haunted by feelings of futility; a teen's eating disorder upsets Lauren, who's also unnerved by an web site advocating anorexia.

Staff and students at Winslow High struggle to get on with their lives after a number of tragic events.

Young teachers join the faculty; students plan a walkout because of the administration's apparent lack of concern for student issues.

A shy student with a powerful voice belts out a song; Hanson tries to help a 12-year-old genius who has no friends.

Courtroom drama energizes Ronnie, who's defending two teens in a murder arraignment; high test scores by poor students prompt Guber's undercover investigation.

A student writes a letter to Whitney Houston asking her to attend the prom with him; Harper tries to prevent teachers from being fired for budgetary reasons; Danny asks Claire's father for permission to marry her.

Ronnie witnesses an attempted rape, then receives a shock when she presses for legal action on behalf of the victim (guest star Amanda Fuller); Hanson tries to prevent a student from being expelled for drugs.

A student discovers Harper and Marilyn have been secretly dating and threatens to go to the school board; Hanson and Claire try to assist a student who is having trouble with his dad.