When he stands just outside the back door of Gateway High School, Paul Jefferson can see the vision.

Since he took over the job as the athletic director in 2022, Jefferson has enjoyed the ability to easily view an expanse of athletic fields and courts configured unlike those at any other high school in Aurora.

It was apparent those facilities needed to be updated, however, and that is currently what is happening, which has made Gateway the epicenter of change in Aurora Public Schools with the 2026-27 school year about to get underway.

“I had my fall coaches meeting and I told them ‘we’re almost there,’” Jefferson said as he gestured at the massive amount of work underway on the campus.

“This is a long time coming. When you get frustrated that you can’t just jump on the field, understand we’re just a couple of months away from being maybe the best show in town in terms of facilities in APS.”

That is an uncommon position historically for Gateway, which opened its doors in 1973.

The school has often been bypassed for major improvements in recent years, but no longer, with significant transformation inside the building and on a larger scale outside of it.

Inside, a fresh new look for hallway floors and lockers is immediately noticeable, while the school’s swimming pool and diving well are in the process of being resurfaced to get ready for the girls season in the fall.

The most noticeable difference is outside, where nearly all of the fields to the south of the school are currently in the process of a massive transformation.

Most significantly, Gateway will become the last high school in the district to get an artificial turf field, though that isn’t expected to be ready until sometime in October and will also include a new track surrounding it. In the meantime, football practices (which officially were allowed to begin Aug. 3) move to the outfield of the adjacent baseball fields once school begins.

Also happening outside is total reconstruction of the school’s tennis courts on the west edge of the campus, which will also have lights when they are completed. There is time for that given Gateway only has girls tennis, which will be played in the spring.

Because of the work, there’s been a diaspora for summer workouts for Gateway sports — Jefferson tipped his cap to the district’s facility management office — as Aurora Public Schools Stadium has been used regularly by the football team, while other teams have been stationed at APS Avenues and Aurora Hills Middle School.

“Little by little, we keep moving forward,” Jefferson said. “I can’t wait to see it.”

Jefferson’s biggest hope is that the work — backed by APS athletic director Casey Powell and former principal Dr. Scott Fiske, who has been succeeded by Amanda McDonald — will continue the recent momentum of the athletic program.

He credits the Class of 2026 for helping making significant steps forward. In the spring alone, the boys volleyball team won its first-ever league championship and qualified for the Class 4A playoffs, the baseball team — which made the postseason in 2025 — made the Colorado League tournament for a fourth straight season, the girls soccer team posted a third consecutive winning season and the girls golf team won the league championship for a second time.

“With how things have turned around in the past few years, I believe this is the perfect time to give them updates like this,” Jefferson said. “I can’t wait for the athletes to get out here.”

In other facilities upgrades around APS high schools, Aurora Central had a new track installed at Illium Field, while it also will have a new set of tennis courts, complete with lights.

“We are really grateful to Casey and APS for allocating the resources necessary to upgrade these facilities,” Aurora Central athletic director Ryan Widemon said. “This investment acknowledges the positive impact that athletics has on so many students.”

Vista PEAK Prep had its original turf field replaced and the new surface includes markings for flag football games.

News and notes: APS District Athletic Directory Casey Powell is back on the job after a lengthy summer recovery from significant back surgery. …At the high school level, there will be three new athletic directors in the district in Jen Rahn at Rangeview (see story, here) and Matthew Koscove at Vista PEAK Prep (see story, here) as well as Emily Bradshaw at Aurora West College Prep Academy.

Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at [email protected]. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports

Read more Investigators look at why a plane was allowed to take off as President Trump’s helicopter approached

Read more Three people charged with threatening judge, witness and officials tied to Nolan Wells investigation

Read more A gunman kills a Mexican social media influencer during a livestream