nelson garcia is at the high school. the bus went off the road near the east side of the terminal? >> reporter: i am over looking the east terminal at dia. 4:30 p.m. today a school bus crashed into a pillar. police are looking into what caused the crash and looking to see if the driver had a medical condition. the football players from legacy high school just got back from playing a game in california. three school buses picked them up. one had 15 students and three adults on board. drove around to the east terminal. the road curves left but the driver continued straight when she hit a pillar on the level 6 over pass. >> circled around, we don't know why. it is unexpected. and the preliminary information is from the other drivers that it was quite curious to them. they don't know why. >> reporter: the two other buses made it back to the high school where the students were reunited with family. football players and coaches on the bus that crashed were taken to four area hospitals. the east terminal right now is closed off to many drivers. there are some tow trucks working to remove

our nelson garcia took a look. >> we will learn the word giant. reporter: in this classroom and classrooms across denver something is happened that has people like vance perplexed. district results. >> he runs a nonprofit citizen's group focused on improving schools and for years, the progress made in classrooms across denver has been in question. >> in the past we have been very critical of the district in terms of the rate of progress. >> the schools in the bottom 20% of the district are in the middle of the state average. >> go check this word. >> considering all of the challenges in denver, he says that's amazing. >> in th have made some great progress. in fact more progress than almost any other district than we have seen nationally or here in colorado. >> i like how his eyes are on me. >> jessica says the difference is in individual attention. >> we teach to every student where they are at. >> she says technology and team teaching is essential. >> we have to collaborate to are at. >> and they want to know more. >> we are interested in trying

they showed their work to nelson garcia. >> reporter: all around denver, something is growing. and it includes the green leaf community garden and students like jesus. >> these are a couple seeds and it turned into a whole bed full of beans. >> reporter: his group is 1 of 10 groups of students from around the metro area, ard and the project to innovate for good. >> they all empower youth to understand their skills and abilities and use them to make their community, their neighborhood a better place. >> what they are trying to grow is more than just food. the foundation is trying to grow social change through efforts like green leaf. >> we just won a grant, with that money we are going to give gardens into people's houses and teach them how to use it and grow healthy food that they >> reporter: jesus wants to teach low income families in northeast denver how to save money and body. >> going out of their way to get something unhealthy when they could go to their back yart. >> reporter: green relief received grant money distributed among all the student groups. >> giving them both

but as 9news reporter nelson garcia shows us, a new era begins with a new location in aurora. >> reporter: the grand opening of a new store, the grand finale of a stressful saga. >> they're >> reporter: for bud's warehouse and employees like chris middleton. >> i was worried. i was extremely worried and sleepless nights. just figuring out how this was all going to come together. >> reporter: this is a nonprofit home improvement thrift store that gives homeless people and those who struggle with substance abuse like middleton job skills through a training program. us and the industry has kind of crowded us out of that. >> reporter: executive director jim riner said it had to find a new home for the home improvement store. >> we had to raise $3 million to purchase this building. it seemed like an impossible dream when we came up with the >> reporter: they obviously made it. >> $30 for you. >> reporter: with big support from the community. >> still it's not like we made this out of all this money we raised or >> reporter: now the new building near i-225 and mississippi in aurora will allow b

nelson garcia talked with a colorado woman who was there. >> here's one of the first videos that had happened. >> reporter: sarah wants everyone to see what she saw. >> and there's the bulldozer in the background. >> reporter: she drove from colorado to the sioux to join the protest against the pipeline designed to deliver 500,000 gallons of crude oil a day through four states to refineries in illinois. >> if we stand together that gives us more of a chance to beat the pipeline. >> reporter: she is worried about the water and the pipeline traveling underneath the missouri river. >> you move back. >> reporter: but she says burial ground prompting protesters to try to stop it. >> i was heart broken to see what was happening because all we are trying to do is protect our water. >> reporter: she says people did cross the fence but private security got aggressive. >> as you could see we don't have any weapons and they had guard dogs who were barking at everybody and basically they are letting the guard dogs loose to bite people. >> doug flanders with the colorado oil and gas association r

nelson garcia, 9news. degree program is unique to colorado and it just started this year. >>> there will be tributes across colorado and the metro area but one of the bigger ones is the red rocks stair climb. hundreds of firefighters and others will honor the firefighters who died in the attacks with the stair climb at red rocks. the event is going to start tomorrow morning at 7:30. each participant pays tribute to a new york firefighter by climbing the equivalent of the 110 stories of the world trade center, that's nine laps around the amphitheater. it supports the fdny counseling services unit and programs provided by the national fallen firefighters foundation. >>> the small town of newcastle on the western slope honored a hometown hero today. a sculpture of caption -- captain william dubois was unveiled this afternoon. he died when his plane crashed while he was flying in support of the military campaign against the islamic state group. captain duboise was 30 years old. he went to rifle high school and

nelson garcia, 9news.> morgan's work is on display at the denver art museum - along with the work of other artists who are autistic - as part of the blue ribbon arts iitiative. the work rk is o museum - along wiothertistic - as part. - along t autistic - as part of the blue ribbon arts initiative. the work will be in the "free" section of the museum it's only hours away now... the first hillary clinton and donald trump - and there's plenty to talk about. 9 news reporter tarhonda thomas is taking a closer look at how voters are split... and what we can expect from tonight's debate. we're talking to her around 5-02. that's going to do it for 9news at 4:30... but we have a debate on the stame stage. and their performances, tonight, could determine which states go "red or blue." the man accused in a deadly mall shooting in washington state - is expected to learn the charges against him today. and we are learning more about his past. and the man police judge today. what we're expecting to learn inside that courtroom. right now... araphoe county is asking for everyone's help... looking for

nelson garcia gives us a look that alumni are shaping the economy and infrastructure. >> two different men on two different paths. >> doug wilson is a project feel manager for the icon venue group. >> i make sure we maintain colorado's state university, his alma mater. >> companies know when they hire a csu graduate, they are not only getting a quality employee but they are gaining leader too. >> we are looking to this as a replay solution. >> peter evans is a sales engineer at send griff, a platform. >> it makes sense for your volume and business. >> and graduated from the university of colorado in de me discipline and working in a team environment. >> two men. >> you got your waterproofing here that cu has on the infrastructure colorado. >> we graduate in the students. >>> mary says right now more and work in key issues. >> it is it and other programs. i hope we are producing graduates to be good citizens. >> cu has that culture. >> and attracts a lot of students from out of state that stay here. >> it is an economic drive. >> a lot of testosterone. >> wilson like most csu students i

as 9news reporter nelson garcia shows us for districts in trouble with the states, these scores will impact the futures. >> why would the author say i'm first among your -- >> reporter: despite the work put in by teachers like hannah moore and the sheridan school district. >> reading in between the lines, that's awesome. >> reporter: they are all on the clock. >> i feel like they are learning a lot. >> leveraging where we are on the clock is >> reporter: this sheridan superintendent has been trying to get his district off the accountability clock, a time line for struggling districts. >> there are a couple of options for assignments. >> reporter: if test scores don't improve in time, sheridan could lose its accreditation from the state. cluff is not sure what that means. >> we are heading into a system that is kind of being developed as we fly it, which is very uncomfortable when you're on the receiving end. >> going to give you lots of time in class to work on it. >> reporter: moore teaches at sore academy, an alternative >> life has thrown them a few curve balls and they are trying

in denver nelson garcia, 9news. association of school boards says the change is needed because right now districts have to comply with two different sets of regulations. the stated board will discuss the issue and vote at its board meeting tomorrow. >>> a river flare one near one of breckenridge -- near one of breckenridge's neighborhoods runs red because of all the iron. it is an eyesore to the planning breck and summit county split the cost to clean it up, spending around $300,000 to cover the water and force it underground. >> keep the water subsurface. what typically happens, when water comes to the surface, it allows for iron oxide to develop and you get that orange coloring that occurs. we're covering up a couple ponds that we water treatment areas that didn't really function the way they were supposed to. we're covering >> along with the water cleanup the town and summit county are putting in a new bus stop for locals in that neighborhood and adding some hiking trails. >>> rocky mountain national park is on t

three went to aurora and have also been released. 9news reporter nelson garcia joins us from legacy high school where students and parents have been gathering. >> reporter: here at legacy high school the two school buses did return here and as each student l. and -- left the bus faculty and students were there. no visible sign of emotion for most of them. everyone was stoic. some of the football coaches left without saying a word to the media. of 18 people hospitalized 15 were students and three coaches suffered suffered the most serious injuries. they wanted to make sure other students who were not on the football trip to california came here to also offer support. we talked with one senior who is concerned for the welfare of her classmates and coaches. >> i was close with one of the coaches. he helped me a lot. the football team has also helped us. i have a heart and lung condition and they helpful and -- very close. like a family. >> we offer our condolences to the family of our bus driver who has died. we need keep the legacy high school and 5 star community in our thoughts and praye

our nelson garcia looks at the results. >> reporter: in the castle view high school math class... >> reporter:... vince believes a distraction are the grades. here is problem, here is situation, talk about it. >> reporter: he wants students to learn from mistakes and work together. he won't game homework or tests. the result... >> you can listen, you can just hear mathematics. >> reporter:... surface is aul bigger than volume. >> reporter: students are supposed to make their own goals and write a journal about lesson. >> basic formula. >> reporter: instead of worrying about test factor a bit, part of the stress goes away and focus is on learning. >> everything we do is meant to be about qualitative feedback as opposed to slapping a number on it. >> reporter: some parents were concerned and went to the prinple rr, but he says he wants math teachers to find new ways of reaching students in a difficult subject. >> i think it benefits every level of learner and makes to do something different. >> reporter: sloan will get a final grade, he has to assign one, it will be based on effort and

nelson garcia has more on the for solving some colorado cases. >> reporter: sometimes a crime is never solved. trevor lives in centennial. trevor and his family finally found out what they suspected all along, after years of wondering. from st. joseph, minnesota to across the state lines, the kidnapping of jacob wetterling gripped the nation in 1989. taken home in front of his brother and friend, the kidnapping remained unsolved for years with little evidence a nobody. there were no solid leads but they did have a suspect, danny heinrich, they just didn't have a strong enough case. >> reporter: instead of retreating into their sorrow, they pushed for changes nationwide to create better until last summer when dna evidence linked him to the abduction of another boy which led to the search of heinrichs home and -- heinrich's home and a break in the case. he finally told investigators the location of jacob's body. wetterling's cases unlike -- not unlike the case of an aurora girl. death but her body was never found. it's also similar to the case of jonbenet ramsey. the boulder police depar

. >> reporter: nelson garcia, 9 news. >> morgan's work is an display at the denver art museum along with other autistic artists as part of blue ribbon arts initiative through october 2nd. >>> oh, that's such a beautiful story. nelson and chris do such a great job. i'm meteorologist kathy sabine outside in the 9 backyard where you can definitely tell the temperatures are dropping country today for those of you enjoying a tour through the mountains, perhaps you saw a rainbow for the leaves changing. 68 the best we could do in denver today, well below the seasonal average, but we kickoff a warming trend tomorrow. i think we'll get to the mid- 70s easily, but done with the 90s i think for the year. winds southeast at 11 at dia, but winds calm in the backyard at the studios. 50 not a lot to show you on the radar. here's the stats for the months. typically it's the highs in the mid-70s, but also the time we see the first snow in denver. we've seen the first snow in the high country, but here in the city we could use rain. all the rain is south and east of us following a cool front shifting off

. >> reporter: nelson garcia, 9news. >> the names of the victims have not been released, but the west metro fire department said the 5-year-old girl and her father were taken to swedish medical center for smoke inhalation. the fire started on an not determined the calls. west metro fire says parents should practice fire drills at home and make sure children know at least two ways out of the house. >>> the douglas county sheriff says quick actions by s.w.a.t. medics saved the life of one of the department's detective its. around 2:30 in the afternoon last friday randall douglas' wife called -- randall rodick's wife called the sheriff's he shot at officer dan brite. at a press conference this morning the douglas county sheriff said the quick action of s.w.a.t. medics saved dan brite's life. detective brite's brother spoke and thanks the community for the outpouring of support and donations. brite is still in critical condition, but doctors are optimistic he will recover. >>> an inmate in the pitkin county jail was caught on camera destroying a jail cell on august off the ceiling and use

nelson garcia, 9news. >> that is no fluke. school leaders are not sure if any other school has ever achieved all perfect scores and people get angry, but it is worth pointing out, not that it matters, but this is an to you. they feel like this is history being made because that is an additional fact.>> it is amazing to see perfect scores, boys girls, doesn't matter. that may add to historical value if you think about it. >> it would be interesting to see how it stacks up. >>> a public defender and nebraska says he is tired of dealing with marijuana in colorado but he has a fix that >>> we want to give you another glimpse of this fire that looks like it is mostly out but it went right up to the property line and it looks like one person has a little bit of french property. you can see it is burning up against a green space. you can see smoke coming out but there's a lo is not going to burn again so firefighters will be happy. we don't know the cause but firefighters got on it relatively quickly and it looks like they have a han

firefighters say what happened next was a textbook rescue where everyone got out alive. 9news reporter nelson garcia talked with the two men who say of saving lives. s before >> reporter: around 12:30 this morning in lakewood -- >> this is a confirmed structure fire. there is a 5-year-old trapped inside of the building on the second floor. >> reporter: -- a parent's biggest fear. >> no. we are outside, but my daughter is inside. >> reporter: dad tried to go in. >> get out of the house. get out of the house. >> reporter: but the smoke and the flames were already too much. >> we knew we had to get in there and find that girl and get her out as fast as we could. >> reporter: the two firefighters ran into the burning house es >> in the interior of the house there was zero visibility. the smoke was pretty thick. >> reporter: and the scared little girl was hiding in her room making for a potentially deadly hide and seek. >> ceiling collapse, floor collapse because like we said, there was fire from end to end top to bottom. >> when i got to her, unfortunately she was hiding in the closet terrified. she was

the long search to find him has led to changes across the country. 9news reporter nelson garcia has more on this case and why it could bring back new hope when it comes to solving some of colorado's most infamous cases. >> reporter: from st. joesph, minnesota to across state lines, the kidnapping of jacob wetterling gripped a nation in 1989. taken while riding hi and friend it remained unsolved for years with little evidence and no body. no solid leads. but investigators did have a suspect. danny heinrich. they just daunt have a strong enough case. >> he wouldn't admit it. ultimately, he asked for a lawyer. >> reporter: instead of retreating into their sorrow, the wetterling family launched a page starting the jacob wetterling resource center and pushing for changes nationwide. danielle evidence linked heinrich to the abduction of another boy at the time. jared shy result, which led to a search of heinrich's home and a new case. >> the defendant is charged with receipt and possession of child pornography. >> reporter: one month before heinrich's trial reports suggest he finally told inve