The Dutch humanist Carolus Clusius (1526-1609) is one of the most important European botanists of the sixteenth century. He is the author of innovative, internationally famous botanical publications, he introduced exotic plants such as the tulip and potato in the Netherlands, he was an advisor of princes and aristocrats in various European countries, professor and manager of the hortus botanicus in Leiden, and a central figure in a vast European network of exchanges.

The Carolus Clusius College

The Carolus Clusius College is a Christian secondary school which is open to pupils from all denominations. There are about 1300 pupils who attend either VMBO (preparatory vocational education), HAVO ( senior general secondary education) or VWO (grammar school). Most pupils are from the city of Zwolle. Because the school is located within walking distance from the railwaystation many students from the surrounding area attend the school.

The Carolus Clusius College is a worldschool. The school is part of the international ELOS (Europe as a learning environment in schools) network. Pupils get enhanced education in the foreign languages and take part in international olympiads, conferences, contests, exchanges, study trips and so on. The school wants to prepare its pupils for a future in which they will increasingly be faced with an international learning and working environment.

In the lower forms the pupils take worldsubjects such as world of technology, world of the theatre and world of media on top of the usual curriculum. They also get enhanced English. In the upper forms pupils can choose to follow an international course such as InterScience or InterHealth on top of their chosen stream. There is a possibility to prepare for international certificates such as The Cambridge First Certificate of English and certificates from Delf Scolaire for French and Goethe Institute for German. Throughout their schoolcareer our pupils make contacts with fellow pupils from Europe and the rest of the world.