Is it ethical for a teacher to use the students' performance as a stepping-stone for career advancement? Is it fair for a student with personal problems to expect sympathetic considerations in academic assessment? These are issues faced by a college professor and his struggling student. Seemingly at opposite ends of the moral spectrum, their lives in fact have much in common. Yet unyielding attitudes in personal philosophy render communication between them impossible. A tale of self-righteousness and cynicism told from two perspectives, "The Footbridge" shows how a slight error in judgment, initiated by an uncompromising observance to principles, or the lack of them, can get out of hand, leading to unpredictable consequences.