It has been twenty-five years since the official notarial deed of Dalton International was signed on March 30, 2001. This was the concrete result of intensive collaboration between my Dalton school in the center of Utrecht, the Netherlands (the Dalton primary school Pieterskerkhof), and four innovative primary schools in Brno, the Czech Republic. Together, we sought out more international Dalton contacts and organized visits to Dalton schools in New York and Sydney.
We have built our Dalton International community on trust and respect. From this foundation, I want to share our vision and mission with the entire Dalton community. From our current position, we can say with certainty that the global Dalton International community is stronger than ever—thanks to trust, respect, and hard work.
The core of Dalton International’s mission is to preserve the legacy of Helen Parkhurst. We have always done our utmost to protect that legacy. Today, we are proud of the high quality of our implementation processes and the high standards we apply when certifying schools and teachers.
Over time, many schools worldwide have become official members of Dalton International, and international Dalton schools have been supported and trained in numerous countries.
In the twenty-five years that Dalton International has existed, we have:
- Initiated and guided the development of international Dalton schools.
- Initiated and supported various national Dalton associations.
- Initiated and supported annual Dalton conferences in various countries.
- Actively contributed to local Dalton magazines.
- Initiated research in collaboration with various universities around the world.
- Contributed to various international publications on Dalton education.
Today, we remain open to new initiatives and are committed to the future of Dalton education worldwide. We continue to open our hearts and minds, united in service to children. We must speak on their behalf. That is our legacy and our mission. We strive to build bridges between countries, to speak with one voice and to look in the same direction. In this way, we honor our legacy and secure our future.
We thank all our friends and educators—visionary and creative—for their support of our work and their help in building a world in which the voice of the child can be heard.
Dalton International strives to stimulate innovation in Dalton education through the international exchange of expertise. The international Dalton conferences held in various countries provide a valuable platform for this exchange.
However, organizing conferences is not the only way we promote cooperation and growth. We are also building a network of Dalton schools that are interested in international exchange and are developing numerous new initiatives in, with, and for this network.
Finally, we offer schools the opportunity to become official International Dalton Schools. Dalton International has its own Dalton training program for this purpose. Schools that have completed the official Dalton training program are designated as International Dalton Schools. The training courses that lead to the official International Dalton School certificate are always organized in close consultation with the school management.
Dalton International has a number of official International Dalton Consultants who deliver these training courses. It also mediates in the process of appointing these consultants. This is done in close consultation with the management of the schools. The consultants specialize in delivering these training courses at schools at an international level. The schools are closely involved in these training courses and are made jointly responsible for the process.
After such a training period, Dalton International awards participating teachers the official ‘International Dalton Teacher’ certificate.
Dalton International is the only institution authorized to award these certificates, both to participating teachers and to participating schools.
Roel Röhner, President of Dalton International