Lisa's Substitute

"Lisa's Substitute" is the nineteenth episode of The Simpsons' second season. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on April 25, 1991. In the episode, Lisa's teacher Miss Hoover takes medical leave due to what she thinks is Lyme disease, so substitute teacher Mr. Bergstrom takes over the class. Lisa finds Mr. Bergstrom's teaching methods inspiring and discovers an entirely new love for learning. When Miss Hoover returns to class, Lisa is devastated to lose her most positive adult role model. Eventually, she realizes that while Mr. Bergstrom was one of a kind, she can find role models in other people, including her father Homer. Meanwhile, Bart runs for class president against Martin.

Jon Vitti wrote the episode and Rich Moore directed it. Dustin Hoffman–using the pseudonym Sam Etic–guest starred in it as Mr. Bergstrom, who was modeled on the physical appearance of Mike Reiss, a longtime writer and producer on the show. The episode features cultural references to Mike Nichols's film The Graduate, which starred Hoffman, and the novel Charlotte's Web by E. B. White. Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. It acquired a Nielsen Rating of 11.1, and was the highest-rated show on the Fox network the week it aired.