Past

In 1919, Helen Parkhurst relocated to New York City, where she opened her first school on West 74th Street. Larger facilities soon became necessary; the Lower School was moved to West 72nd Street, and the High School opened in the autumn of 1929 in the current building at 108 East 89th Street. Eleanor Roosevelt admired the work of Helen Parkhurst and played an important role in expanding the population and resources of the school by promoting a merger between the Todhunter School and Dalton in 1939.

Enlarged and modified through the years, Dalton has served as the center of an ever expanding community, always alert to promising innovations in education and yet, in the best sense, committed to traditional values. Dalton still celebrates many of the school-wide traditions begun by Helen Parkhurst, including the Candle Lighting Ceremony, Greek Festival, and Arch Day.

Over the years, Dalton has gained international recognition for its academic excellence. Schools in The Netherlands, Australia, England, Korea, The Czech Republic, Taiwan, and Chile have adopted the Dalton Plan. Today, there are three schools founded on the Dalton Plan in Japan. Leading educators from public and private schools and universities, from the United States and abroad, visit Dalton on a regular basis to observe its system of education and to learn more about the school's recognized achievements in the area of technology.

Dalton's population and facilities have grown considerably in the last three decades. In 1964, the First Program was moved from 89th Street to a facility of its own at 61 East 91st Street, providing an ideal setting for kindergartners and first graders. In 1978, the First Program expanded to include the adjacent building at 53 East 91st Street, and it was enlarged again in the fall of 1992 to include 63 East 91st Street. One entire floor of this new building was converted into a science and art center for Dalton's youngest students.

In 1992, a Physical Education Center was constructed at 200 East 87th Street. This state-of-the-art facility is used by all students in the second through twelfth grades. Comprising over 32,000 square feet and three floors in a new high-rise building, the air-conditioned Center represents Dalton's largest single addition of space since the school's opening at 108 East 89th Street in 1929. It includes an exhibition gymnasium capable of seating 500 spectators, as well as a second practice gym, an aerobics room, a wrestling room, and a fully-equipped fitness and weight training facility.

Construction of Dalton's Physical Education Center enabled the school to convert its former gymnasium into academic space including classrooms, a dance studio, and a multimedia art and architecture Laboratory. In 1995, an entire new top floor was built which Houses The Abby and Mitch Leigh Fine Arts Center. Modern art studios with skylights and large windows overlook Manhattan's skyline. Two levels below are Dalton's newly renovated Middle School and High School Crane libraries containing over 50,000 volumes. A Web-based online public access catalog (OPAC) enables users to have easy access to the catalogs of all three Dalton libraries via workstations in the library or the Internet.

In 2003, the music floor was dramatically renovated and now houses the Performing Arts Center. This dynamic new space enables Middle and High School students to pursue their passion in the arts, whether in music, theater, or dance. With state-of-the-art acoustics, theatrical rigging and lights, a music library, a control booth, recording capabilities, a large rehearsal hall, and a new classroom space, Dalton's performing arts curricula continues to be vibrant and innovative.

In 2007, the 3rd floor at 89th Street was completely reconfigured—including a cafeteria dining area, student lounge, and nurse’s office—and the cafeteria’s outdated kitchen had a top-to-bottom renovation. Students, faculty, and staff all benefited from this more efficient, modern, and welcoming space. 

After acquiring an adjacent townhouse, the First Program facility at East 91st Street was transformed. In 2013, we finished two ambitious phases of construction and renovation including a new spacious science center (with roof access) and art center next door; a modern kitchen; an enhanced energy-efficient infrastructure; improved handicapped access, including a new elevator; a reconfigured basement level with two refurbished Kindergarten Houses; a new student technology center; and a new admissions office. 

Following 2 ½ years of construction, Dalton’s newest facilities opened in September 2019. This was an exciting, once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine our entire school for the 21st century. And this investment offered an unprecedented opportunity to connect Parkhurst’s pedagogical foundation to the physical space facilitating project-based, experiential learning. From top to bottom, this project ensures that we can serve each student in inspiring, new ways.

We added a 12,200 square foot, two-story rooftop expansion to our existing 12-story 89th Street building. Designed by Architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), our new facility includes a dedicated STEAM facility and open space for collaborative, interdisciplinary meetings, and community events. The expansion gives us the flexibility to build on the success of our programs in the STEM fields, robotics, and transdisciplinary work.

The Ellen C. Stein Center for Collaborative Study, our thoughtful, forward-looking design encourages interaction and chance encounters between students, faculty, and disciplines. The open communicating staircases, informal nooks, and pockets of seating allow for moments of spontaneous, serendipitous conversation, while movable classroom walls encourage collaboration, creativity, and exploration.

This flexible place of new learning enables methods of teaching not yet envisioned and fosters new connections between faculty and students. Potential curricular innovations are boundless with the addition of a robotics field, prototyping space, an engineering lab, computer science & digital media rooms, a machine room, a nutritional science kitchen, a stunning greenhouse skylight, and glass-enclosed art studios adjacent to a dance studio – which doubles as a black-box theater. Ample space is also available for art exhibits and science competitions.