Last term, like most in the past 14 years, I taught an introduction to organizational behavior (OB). My students were Radcliffe Discovery students-a select group of bright, underemployed women who provide principle financial support for their families. A seasoned veteran, I turned on professional automatic pilot and prepared as usual for the course. I expected nothing monumental from an opening class intended to introduce course goals and requirements, offer a snippet of theory about new group formation, and allow everyone to introduce themselves. I anticipated customary beginning-of-course jitters, moderate amounts of "It's hard being back in the classroom after all these years," and predictable questions about requirements, grading, books, and library reserve lists. I planned to wrap up those loose ends and end the first class early. We did not end early-in fact, we ran 40 minutes late. This was not the perfunctory first class meeting that experience had led me to expect. I left that class deeply moved and poignantly reminded of the power of gender in the classroom. What happened in that first course meeting? What does it all mean for the classroom and for the teaching of OB?