MENLO PARK, Calif., Aug. 31, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alto International School in Menlo Park, California and Louisenlund School, located near Kiel, Germany, launched a partnership to develop joint student and teacher programs, such as exchange opportunities for students. The cooperation is one of the many projects of the Kiel – San Francisco twin-city partnership, which was formed in 2017.

The director of international affairs at Louisenlund, Catherine Donovan, visited Alto International School on Wednesday, August 28 to get to know the Alto community and formally sign the memorandum of understanding together with Michael Chapman, head of school at Alto International School. Michael Chapman said, “Alto, founded as the first German-immersion school on the West Coast, and Louisenlund in northern Germany are both IB World Schools and have a shared vision of providing international opportunities for students. We are looking forward to a fruitful and collaborative partnership.”  

Catherine Donovan added, “At Louisenlund, we place great importance on giving students the chance to spread their wings and explore the world in preparation for life in a global world. The partnership with Alto will be a wonderful opportunity for our students to experience one another’s culture and school community.”

Catherine Donovan was accompanied to the Bay Area by Ulf Kämpfer, the mayor of Kiel and other government officials and educators from the Kiel region. The partnership is supported by the German non-profit organization The Bay Areas, which aims to connect people and organizations in the regions of San Francisco, Kiel, and Schleswig-Holstein.

About Alto International School
Alto International School is an independent school in Menlo Park, CA serving 250 students from preschool through high school and representing more than 40 nationalities. Alto’s mission is to provide an outstanding international, multilingual education focused on inquiry-based learning with the goal of fostering confident, creative and responsible learners and global thinkers. Alto is an International Baccalaureate World School, accredited by the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). It is the only Bay Area school offering the IB from preschool through high school.

About Louisenlund
Louisenlund School was founded in 1949 and is today the second largest boarding school in Germany. Close to 440 students from over 19 countries attend the school; over 70% of Louisenlund’s students live on campus. High school students can choose to pursue the German Abitur or the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. The school also offers a unique STEM program to talented German students. The school is part of the international network of Round Square schools. Louisenlund stands for a world-class education, with high standards for academic achievement as well as character development.

For more information, go to https://altoschool.org/  
Media contact: Andrea Boren, andrea@gullrock.com, 650-644-1700

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/db85f2c1-3ba3-4ca7-adfe-4df0becb4918