Odessa

4.4 (353)
DOCUMENTARY
SERIES

A failing school system. An oil bust. A marching band determined to keep playing through a pandemic. This is the story of one Texas high school in crisis — and trying to reopen its doors. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

EPISODE 1

Part 1: The School Year Begins

Odessa is a four-part audio documentary series about one West Texas high school reopening during the pandemic — and the teachers, students and nurses affected in the process. For the past six months, The New York Times has documented students’ return to class at Odessa High School from afar through Google hangouts, audio diaries, phone calls and FaceTime tours. And as the country continues to debate how best to reopen schools, Odessa is the story of what happened in a school district that was among those that went first.

38 min
EPISODE 2

Part 2: Friday Night Lights

In 1988, a high school football team in Odessa, Texas, was so good that it became the inspiration for a book, movie and, eventually, the television series “Friday Night Lights.” And in the decades since, as West Texas has weathered the unsettling undulations of the oil industry, football has remained steady. So after the pandemic hit, the town did what it could to make sure the season wasn’t disrupted. And at Odessa High School, where the football team struggles to compete against local rivals, the members of their award winning marching band were relieved they could keep playing. In Part 2 of Odessa, we follow what happened when the season opened — and how the school weighed the decision to start against the possible risks to students’ physical and mental health.

44 min
EPISODE 3 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Part 3: The Band Bus Quarantine

Last fall, as Odessa High School brought some students back to campus with hybrid instruction, school officials insisted mask wearing, social distancing and campus contact tracing would keep students and faculty safe. And at the beginning of the semester, things seemed to be going OK. But then a spike in coronavirus cases hit town, putting the school’s safety plan to the test. In part three of our four-part series, we follow what happened when a student quarantine stretched the school’s nurses to capacity, fractured friendships and forced some marching band members to miss a critical rite of passage: the last football game of their high school career.

36 min
EPISODE 4 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Part 4: Wellness Check

This episode contains references to mental health challenges, including eating disorders. Joanna Lopez, the high school senior we met in our first episode of Odessa, has turned inward: staying in her bedroom, ghosting friends and avoiding band practice. But playing with the marching band at the last football game of her high-school career offers a moment of hope that maybe, one day, things will get better. In the finale of our four-part series, we listen as the public health crisis becomes a mental health crisis in Odessa.

43 min

4 Episodes

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Joanna Lopez

Guest

4.4

out of 5

353 Ratings

Watching a Disaster Unfold

12/31/2021

Mike from NOVA

MINOR SPOILER ALERT: This series is really good, but it’s also really hard to listen to. Even though we are not out of the pandemic, you know how this part ends. But listening to the different groups start with hope and confidence, doing their best managing conflicting concerns, and then hear as it slowly falls apart is depressing. My daughter was a high school senior at the same time, and this series put me back in a place I didn’t want to be. Minor Spoiler: this is just a slice of time story; there’s no summary of how everyone managed. The end was just, “ It could have been worse.”
Odessa PERMIAN

08/11/2022

Reviewer_2012-1

See above Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School, Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School Odessa PERIMAN was the High School portrayed on the series Friday Night Lights. Not Odessa High School
Looking forward to seeing Season 2

08/11/2021

HNingS

It is back to school season again, and new virus appears. Want to know what is happening before school reopen and what teacher, students and parents expect now.
Valuable COVID story

08/06/2021

orakzaiiiii

This was an incredibly strong and particularly heart breaking part of The Daily. Especially because it connected to me so much as I’m the same demographic as this lady. But also it exposed the vulnerabilities of some of the poorest parts of America.

A failing school system. An oil bust. A marching band determined to keep playing through a pandemic. This is the story of one Texas high school in crisis — and trying to reopen its doors. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Channel

The New York Times
Creator

The New York Times
Episodes

4
Seasons

1
Rating

Clean
Copyright

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Show Website

Odessa
Provider

The New York Times Company