Internet trouble! mac help needed

ok so basically i work at a school where we have a bunch of G5s some are hooked up via ethernet cables others through airport extreme… anyways, my problem: i have a macbook pro that connects to the network and gets an ip addy (172.20.186.181) but doesn’t have internet. network diagnostics, network setup asst., airport utility etc… run at first then quit responding… if i plug it in w/an ethernet cable, internet works… this is a problem that has just sprung up yesterday and it is very irritating. wireless internet works at home, the office, and other places… just not at the school as of yesterday.
what could cause this?