At the heart of this is the Dalton Plan, a student-centered philosophy that has been Dalton’s foundation for over 100 years. The three key pillars of the Dalton Plan — House, Assignment and Lab — create a structure where students are at the center of their learning. Thanks to our highly trained faculty and inquisitive, inspired students, Dalton’s rigorous academic program emphasizes intellectual curiosity, independence, risk-taking, and open-mindedness, rather than rote learning. The breadth and depth of our programming in the arts, engineering, and athletics reflects Dalton's deep and longstanding commitment to developing the whole child. The extensive service-learning opportunities, built into the Dalton experience, expand students' understanding of their world and equip them as global citizens. Our belief in the capabilities of our young people is in the very DNA of our school.

Also at the heart of Dalton is our deep commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We recognize and value the enrichment that comes from a community of people from diverse races, ethnicities, religions, genders, sexual-orientations and socioeconomic groups. Our anti-racism and other diversity, equity and inclusion goals are intended to deepen our understanding of different experiences and to provide a broad platform for sharing and appreciating those differences. Moreover, we believe that excellence best comes from diverse communities that offer multiple perspectives. At Dalton, we strive to see every child in their beautiful and complex entirety.