Beata Doreck (1833 – 1875) was a German educator and first president of the Froebel Society who worked to bring kindergartens to Britain.
Despite her father's opposition to her becoming a teacher, she trained for three years at the normal school at Riboville, Alsace, and received her teaching diploma in Colmar at the age of nineteen.
[1] Doreck added a kindergarten to her own school, but struggled to find staff for it as the concept was little understood outside of Germany.
[1] In November 1874, she held a meeting at her house in Kensington Gardens to bring together British educationists who were interested in kindergarten work.
[3] The next month, Doreck was elected the first president of The Froebel Society for the Promotion of the Kindergarten System, a society which also included Buss, Payne, Eleonore Heerwart, Caroline Bishop, Emilie Michaelis, and Adelaide Manning, and was soon joined by Emily Shirreff, who succeeded Doreck as president.