Students who attend the school live in the communities of Palos Heights, Crestwood, Worth, Alsip, Robbins, and Calumet Park.

The school is named in honor of Alan B. Shepard, the first American astronaut to travel into space and the fifth person to walk on the Moon.

The school and local residents argued between two sites located on either side of the intersection of 120th Street and Pulaski Avenue in Alsip.

Shepard competes in the South Suburban Conference and is a member of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA); the organization which governs most sports and competitive activities in the state.

The school sponsors interscholastic teams for young men and women in basketball, bowling, cross country, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, and water polo.