"Whatever knowledge I have I like to pass on," Hutchison says.  "Students are the thirstiest people you'll meet; they're longing to soak it all in and do the best they can with it."

Hutchison was given the opportunity to pass on her skills when GL director Roy Steinberg asked her to be a guest speaker at the classes he was teaching at SFT.  "Roy was teaching several different courses about understanding the technical side of cameras," she says, "and he came to me and said, 'Would you speak to my students?  They'd like to know what it's like to get a job and keep a job on a soap.' I went in and spoke for three hours, and the response was very good." After several such engagements, Joan See, founder and artistic director of SFT, offered Hutchison an opportunity to teach on a regular basis.

Hutchison is no stranger to the role.  "I've taught all through my life, in different realms: ballet, private coaching, seminars, but not quite as connected with such a big organization," the actress says.  "This is a more formal situation where the head of an organization wanted me to come on board and actually head up a department.  I couldn't commit to that much time, but I am in partnership with Roy Steinberg and Joan See in developing the daytime division, so I am going to the meetings and participating in ideas.  I'm enjoying it one day a week."

Being a soap journalist and a life-long student of the genre - not to mention a closet actor - I was thrilled with the opportunity to monitor the course.  Once the class begins, Hutchison advises everyone to become aware of all 10 soaps; know the characters and the actors, the core families and where exactly the student, as an actor, might fit into the show's canvas.  Hutchison then leads the actors through the process of acting on soaps; fielding questions ranging from rehearsal time, auditions, screen tests and what to expect when performing a love scene.  Working in a studio setting, students have the opportunity to videotape their performances as their classmates operate the cameras and work in the control booth.  This allows each student to see the progress of their work.

It doesn't end when the scene is over.  Besides giving the finer points of on-camera behavior, Hutchison also touches on off-camera elements specifically, the importance of networking, dealing with managers and agents, and whether to hire a publicist.  "When I first started in this business no one told me about networking, or what to do about press, and how to deal with agents and managers," she says.  Hutchison encourages her students to be active participants in their careers.

Hutchison's honesty is one of the many appealing aspects of this particular class.  "You're getting the information straight from the horse's mouth," says student Jerry Leeds.  "You can ask her anything.  She's been there and has done everything.  She's been on soaps for 10 years.  And she is extremely genuine and honest.  Sometimes you have a teacher telling you, 'Yeah, you're good, but you could use a little work, but this is great.' She just comes right home with it.  You trust everything she says.  And it is really nice to have that trust in the classroom."

Aside from teaching, her most important project is raising her two sons, Hutch, 3, and Trevor, 2. Hutchison and husband John Viscardi (ex-Father Tony Vallone, OLTL) choose projects that will allow them time to be hands-on parents.  "There are times when our schedules clash and we do rely on our baby sitter, Leeza, or John's mother, but it's very rare that we're both working on the same day; and there's always one parent home to do the bathing and dinnertime," she says.

Hutchison has an array of projects in the works, including voice-overs for audio books.  She recently completed the audio book for Jodie Foster's new movie Anna and the King.  Hutchison also is tentatively scheduled to star in the independent film The Tenement, and to host a new television show, tentatively called Vows.  "It's all about unusual, romantic and very strange weddings," says Hutchison with a laugh, as she recalls her wedding to Viscardi.  "We got married in the Grand Canyon.  We hiked; it took us eight days, John got stung by a scorpion and I sprained my ankle.  It was an adventure."

Currently, Hutchison is working on a program called Tea with Fi, which will air on American Movie Classics and the Romance Classics network.  "I'm going to introduce the afternoon tea-time film.  They will be shooting in different locations around New York, and at the end of each week there will be a tea with a guest.  It's very much informational,, entertainment, a fantasy world," she explains.  "The ambiance is going to be fantastical - having tea at 4 p.m. in a ball gown at the Russian Tea Room.  What we're building toward is a 30 minute show, an extension of the teas, on Sundays; we are creating the format as we go.  It's a fun way to start any kind of programming, because you build an audience and the shape of the show."

The current session of Understanding Daytime runs through early March.  For information about future sessions, call the School of Film and Television at (212) 645-0030 or (888) 645-0030; or visit the Web site at www.filmandtelevision.com. "I've told everyone that this is a priority that I'd like to keep," Hutchison says.  "It's something I'm committed to doing, so if everything works out and I'm available every Wednesday, then I will say yes to future semesters." This is one teacher who certainly deserves a gold star.