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Whether it’s recovering from an injury or surgery, or treating an illness, a stay at the hospital can become draining and often repetitive. But it’s the moments that patients have with visitors that brings smiles to their faces and uplifts their spirits.

For Paul Nelson, who is a frequent patient at UCHealth Highlands Ranch Hospital, having a visitor always brightens his day.

“It gets pretty boring sitting here in the hospital,” Nelson said.

However, a mid-April hospital visitor is one that Nelson is going to remember – and for a good reason. He was one of many patients to sit down and chat with Michael Toglia, a first baseman for the Colorado Rockies.

Baseball is a generational love in Nelson’s family. Not only did he take part in creating the random “booms” and “crash” sound effects used at baseball games across the country, his grandson, who plays for Mountain Vista High School, is a baseball fanatic.

Nelson quickly grabbed his phone to capture the moment that Toglia, sitting about a foot away, signed a baseball for him.

“I like baseball – it’s America’s pastime,” said Nelson. “My grandson is very excited.”

Oftentimes, patients at the UCHealth Anschutz campus in Aurora have the opportunity to meet their favorite athletes, but this spring, some of that same love got shared with the patients at the UCHealth Highlands Ranch hospital.

Toglia was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 2019 and made his debut with the team in 2022 as a switch-hitter.

This was not his first time visiting with patients since he made his Major League Baseball debut. Last year, Toglia and his fiancee, Jenna, took time to be with patients at the Infusion Center at UCHealth Anschutz campus.

“There’s no reason not to (come back),” said Toglia. “They couldn’t wait to share stuff about their grandchildren and their baseball interests, and so it was really easy to talk with them.”

As he went room to room, Toglia and the patients shared all kinds of stories with one another – one being why Toglia has the number four on his Colorado Rockies jersey.

Toglia told a patient that his father is a New York Yankees fan and that one favorite player’s was number seven, Mickey Mantle. That number was already taken, so he went with another of his father’s favorites, Lou Gehrig, number four.

Toglia and another patient began talking about some of the original Colorado Rockies players when the patient mentioned that he was at the first game played on Coors Field in the spring of 1995.

One of the most memorable patients was 99-year-old Mary Bushman. The two spoke about hockey, history, Japanese culture and dogs. Bushman was taken aback when Toglia signed a baseball for her.

“I’ll show everybody,” Bushman said about her signed baseball.

It was a surreal day for Mark Gill, a patient and avid Colorado Rockies fan, who was able to shake hands with the athlete he has been watching on the field and screen for years.

“I’ve been following him ever since he came into the majors,” said Gill. “Being a left-handed first baseman is what you look for as a professional and so he’s got the talent.”

Gill has been playing baseball since high school and has played in a few of the Colorado Rockies fantasy camps. Together, they talked about the team’s slow start to the season, game play, player statistics and about some of the prospects.

“It’s always uplifting when somebody like that comes in and meets you and wants to talk to you,” said Gill. “(It) gets people in a good mood.”

While the patients had an unforgettable day, Toglia said that it was a refreshing experience to meet one-on-one with some of his fans and hear about their life stories.

“It’s easy to get kind of trapped in this narrow tunnel vision that’s just baseball,” said Toglia. “Then you come to a place like this and you realize that there’s just so many people out there with different life experiences and interests – that it’s not just about baseball.”

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John Adams Academy’s application to the Colorado Charter School Institute, submitted in March, provides the clearest look to date at what the charter school proposes for Sterling Ranch, including its vision for a classical K-12 program, a projected enrollment of 825 students and a multimillion-dollar budget.

The academy plans to open in August 2026, starting with grades K-7, and aims to expand by one grade each year until it reaches a full K-12 model.

The 644-page application outlines a curriculum built on patriotic rituals, mentorship and liberal arts instruction rooted in America’s founding ideals. While supporters call it a welcome addition to the growing community, critics argue that the school’s approach is ideologically driven, duplicative of some existing education models in Douglas County and designed to avoid local oversight.

“This is a blatant attempt to sidestep the district and impose a rigid, politically-charged model that doesn’t reflect the values of most families here,” one Sterling Ranch parent wrote in a letter to the Douglas County District Accountability Committee. “We just passed a bond to build a neighborhood school. We don’t need this.”

The decision to seek state-level authorization has fueled the controversy surrounding the charter school’s proposal.

Last December, the Douglas County school board narrowly voted to release the charter’s application to the Colorado Charter School Institute, shifting control away from the district and cutting off future oversight.

“Once you four vote to do this, they will be gone forever and they will never be required to communicate with us again,” board member Brad Geiger said during that December meeting.

The board members who voted in favor of the request said they favored charter autonomy and believed it would protect the school from leadership changes that may oppose policy waivers the charter would seek.

Colorado Community Media reached out to Ellie Reynolds, founder of John Adams Academy in Douglas County, for comment. This article will be updated if she responds.

According to the application, John Adams Academy would implement what it calls an “American Classical Leadership Education” model. The curriculum emphasizes the study of classic literature, primary source documents and Socratic discussion. It also includes oral exams, patriotic songs and daily flag ceremonies as part of a school culture focused on civic virtue and character development.

The school’s stated goal is to cultivate “servant leaders” prepared to defend liberty and participate in self-government. Lessons would center around four pillars: Core Values, the Classics, the Liberal Arts and the Art of Mentoring.

The application frames its approach as a departure from “modern education models that simply focus on standardized testing and workforce preparation,” and instead prioritizes developing students who can “think deeply, lead ethically and defend freedom.”

Despite its distinctive ideological framework, the school’s academic plan commits to meeting or exceeding Colorado’s graduation standards. The application outlines plans to align coursework with state benchmarks, implement Individual Career and Academic Plans and offer required credit hours across core content areas.

John Adams Academy currently operates three campuses in northern California, serving more than 4,000 students. The application describes those schools as high-performing, with an equal number of students on waitlists.

But critics in Douglas County have pointed to publicly available data suggesting those campuses underperform compared to state averages.

“These old-fashioned methods stifle creativity and critical thinking and exacerbate existing learning deficits,” wrote another Sterling Ranch resident in a letter to the District Accountability Committee.

Others have questioned whether the model is designed to serve a broad public audience or a narrower ideological niche.

“The way they describe the curriculum makes it clear they’re pushing a very particular worldview,” said a parent who spoke at a recent district meeting. “It doesn’t sound like education for everyone — it sounds like education for people who already agree with them.”

In its application, John Adams Academy projects steady growth from 410 students in its first year to 825 by year five. As of March 24, the school reported collecting 291 letters of intent and said it expects to reach 350 before the Colorado Charter School Institute makes a final decision in June.

But that figure still falls short of the 410 students needed to meet the school’s first-year enrollment goal, and, potentially, its budget assumptions. The proposed budget relies heavily on per-pupil funding, meaning under-enrollment in the first year could trigger financial shortfalls or require significant adjustments.

Even among the intent-to-enroll numbers, there are signs of a mismatch. Three dozen families expressed interest in enrolling eighth graders, but the school does not plan to offer eighth grade until the second year. That gap raises additional questions about how many letters of intent reflect students who would actually be eligible to attend when the school opens.

The application frames early interest as evidence of unmet demand in the Sterling Ranch area, where population growth continues.

However, critics argue that demand doesn’t justify launching a new charter school, especially when the district already plans to open a neighborhood school in the same area in 2027.

Several opponents also noted in letters to the district that the district is closing or consolidating neighborhood schools in nearby Highlands Ranch due to declining enrollment, raising questions about whether capacity is truly a concern.

Still, some families argued that the interest in John Adams Academy reflects a legitimate desire for educational alternatives.

“My neighbors and I have had to send our kids outside the area just to access charter schools,” one Sterling Ranch resident wrote in a letter supporting the application. “There are more than enough students here for two schools.”

In year one, John Adams Academy anticipates bringing in just under $4.6 million to support 410 students and 16 full-time teachers. By year five, that number climbs to more than $9.8 million with 825 students and 31 teachers.

The application includes no tuition revenue and minimal outside fundraising, meaning nearly all income depends on meeting enrollment projections and receiving full state funding. If the school fails to enroll enough students, it could face a significant gap between expected revenue and actual funding.

On the expense side, the school proposes average teacher salaries starting at $52,000, with administrative staffing ramping up alongside enrollment.

The budget also accounts for payments to the American Classical Lyceum, a contracted public benefit corporation tied to John Adams Academy in California.

The application does not detail the cost breakdown of that relationship or how much will be spent on management fees, curriculum licensing or other services.

The Colorado Charter School Institute requires new schools to present a realistic and sustainable financial plan. According to its guidance, budgets should reflect conservative enrollment estimates and include contingency planning – areas where critics say the John Adams Academy proposal falls short.

“They’re relying almost entirely on optimistic enrollment numbers and state funding,” one opponent wrote in a letter to the District Accountability Committee. “There’s very little room for error. If the numbers don’t materialize, the school and its students will feel it immediately.”

The Colorado Charter School Institute has 90 days from the submission date, March 24, to evaluate the application and issue a decision. That process includes a public meeting, a staff review and a final vote by the board.

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The Douglas County School District will close three elementary schools next year, becoming the latest K-12 system in metro Denver to shutter buildings because of declining enrollment.

The district’s seven-member Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday evening to approve the closure of three schools: Acres Green Elementary in Littleton and Heritage and Saddle Ranch elementaries in Highlands Ranch.

“We know a lot of families are very upset with the district, and we stand ready to support our families and our students with what ever they need moving forward,” Superintendent Erin Kane said.

Sixth-graders who attend elementary schools that feed into Highlands Ranch, Mountain Vista and ThunderRidge high schools also will move to middle schools, a plan that Kane previously said will help middle schools struggling with low enrollment.

The school closures go into effect on July 1, 2026.

More than 900 K-12 students attend the three schools, which also employ 217 educators, according to the district.

The district has guaranteed that staff members affected by the closures will be able to get another position within the district.

Before their vote, board members expressed how difficult the decision to close schools was for them and showed support for district workers in crafting their recommendation.

“This is hard,” board President Christy Williams said before the vote. “None of the seven of us want to be in this position.”

A few parents pushed back on the school closures during the meeting’s public comment session, including over what they said was a lack of transparency regarding the process used by district officials to decide which schools to close.

“We have said it over and over again… the transparency of this recommendation process is seriously lacking,” one parent said. “I understand the benefits of this consolidation. I’m not arguing against that. I’m arguing against the process of the pairing schools recommendation.

The Douglas County School District is the state’s third-largest district, enrolling 61,851 students as of October. That’s down 7% or 4,851 pupils from a decade ago, according to data from the Colorado Department of Education.

Statewide, K-12 public school enrollment has fallen for more than a decade as fewer Coloradans have babies. In metro Denver, high housing costs are also shifting where families live, meaning that districts, such as Douglas County, are also building new schools even as they close others.

Other districts also have closed schools or plan to because declining enrollment is putting financial pressure on their balance sheets, as schools are funded based on the number of students in their classrooms.

Denver Public Schools will close and restructure 10 schools at the end of the current academic year. Jeffco Public Schools has shuttered more than a dozen schools in recent years.

In Douglas County, declining enrollment has been most prominent in Highlands Ranch.

More than 7,400 students attend elementary school in Highlands Ranch, down from more than 10,400 children a decade ago, according to the school district. Eleven of the elementary schools that send students to the three high schools — Mountain Vista, Thunderridge and Highlands Ranch — in the suburb are projected to have fewer than 400 students, according to the resolution passed by the school board Tuesday.

District officials looked at 16 Highlands Ranch schools before recommending which ones the school board should close.

Under the district’s plan, Acres Green students will move to Fox Creek Elementary School, unless they are affected by school boundary changes also passed by the board Tuesday.

Heritage students will go to Summit View Elementary School, and Saddle Ranch pupils will go to Eldorado Elementary School unless they are affected by the boundary changes.

Vi at Highlands Ranch, Colorado’s only Type A (life care) contact continuing care retirement/life plan community, is launching a major expansion, the company announced Thursday.

The expansion will increase the number of beds by 50% in the CCRC’s care center, which provides assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing services. The center currently has 24 certified skilled nursing beds, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Nursing Home Compare website.

“Our expanded care center now provides real-time, on-campus services to a greater number of area seniors, to support better health outcomes and offer peace of mind for residents and their families,” Melissa Evraets, Vi vice president of resident Care and chief nursing officer, said in a statement.

Last year, the CCRC’s independent living common areas were renovated.

The efforts are meant to help residents age in place at the CCRC, according to parent company Vi Living. “Vi residents can transition between specialized care levels seamlessly and safely, without the disruption of hospital transfers or off-site moves,” the company said.

The changes also will include services added for nonresidents — short-term rehabilitation, assisted living, memory support or skilled nursing care — for the first time.

The CCRC’s assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing residential areas are licensed by the Colorado Department of Health Services. Skilled nursing is also Medicare-certified. Most care center staff members are certified by the Alzheimer’s Foundation, according to Vi.

Vi at Highlands Ranch is one of Chicago-based Vi Living’s 10 CCRCs. Vi Living was a finalist last year in the McKnight’s Excellence in Technology Awards.