The decision to write a charter began with several staff meetings to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of creating a charter school. Encouraged by Executive Director of Student Services, James P. Haessly, the original group of teachers, most of whom are still teaching, researched several schools in the Midwest that focused on working with high school age at-risk students. Teachers Lori Hughes and Rosie Merchle both discovered the Circle of Courage philosophy almost simultaneously. Because of recent graduate class work, Mrs. Merchle had a copy of some of the printed discussions about "No Throw Away Kids." The works of Brendtro, Brokenleg, and Van Bockern discussed in depth the "Circle of Courage" philosophy. Thus was launched  the whole-school adoption of this core approach to help students reconnect with their educational goals.

Through the Waukesha School Board Curriculum & Instruction Committee, we requested approval to apply for a $10,000 planning grant to further explore what schools existed within 300 miles that addressed the specific learning styles and needs of the Waukesha at-risk student population.

We were approved by DPI for the planning grant, did extensive research in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois, and then started the process to garner approval for two $150,000 implementation grants via Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) in 2000-2002. Harvey Philip Alternative Charter School (HPACS) became the first charter school in the School District of Waukesha.

We used some of those funds to gain knowledge in the Circle of Courage movement and the staff attended Life Space Crisis Intervention seminars in North Dakota and Waukesha. Ninety five percent of the staff are certified in Life Space Crisis Intervention, a strong de-escalation, problem-solving approach to students in crisis. Implementation grant funds were used to purchase the necessary technology to provide our students efficient access to the Internet so that we could add a list of 21st Century Skills to their curriculum. We used those funds to research many schools already in operation that focused their energy and talent on helping at-risk students reconnect to their education and graduation plan.  Upon implementation of the research, we adopted the Circle of Courage philosophy as one of the core values of HPACS.

The focus of our original grants were: 

• The development of a cohesive staff of well-trained teachers.

• To equip our classrooms with sufficient technology in order to attract students to this new methodology of learning.

• To install projectors, wireless computer groupings, and some basic classroom amenities in several classrooms. 

In June 2007, our 5-year charter contract was renewed by the School District of Waukesha because of the quality work accomplished and the consistent graduation rates of our students. Educational research continues to show that various age groups have specific learning style and developmental needs, and each HPACS program continues to uniquely address different grades and learning needs. Every year, each program establishes sound performance indicators and benchmarks linked to state and national standards. This is achieved through assessment of individual learning styles and the application of traditional and non-traditional educational methods.