Jerri Blank is a former prostitute and drug addict who returns to high school as a 46-year-old freshman at Flatpoint High. After running away from home, she became 'a boozer, a user, and a loser' after dropping out as a teenager, funding her drug habits through prostitution, stripping, and theft. She has been incarcerated multiple times, the last for 'stealing the TV'. At home, Jerri's father Guy is in a coma, although he appears capable of remarkable feats. Her stepmother Sara is vain and resentful, while her stepbrother Derrick is a bullying jock. Jerri attempts to do things the right way but often ends up learning the wrong lesson. Her misadventures frequently involve, either directly or indirectly, neurotic history teacher Chuck Noblet and his secret lover, sensitive art teacher Geoffrey Jellineck.
