Records of the borough of Northampton Towne (present day Allentown) and the townships of Salisbury reflect that $421.71 was paid for the education of children in the district in 1828.

Both boys and girls from families in the lower income brackets were permitted to attend any one of the approved private schools in the borough.

At a meeting of the citizens of Northampton on September 12, 1834, a referendum for the establishment of formalized public education in the school district was passed by the voters, 137 to 1.

[9] During the initial period following passage of the referendum, all boys and girls of the borough attended the privately run schools in Northampton Towne.

Tuition there was $10 to $20 per term per student, depending on the number of subjects taken and was paid for by the school district.

[9] On April 16, 1836, an act of the Pennsylvania General Assembly changed the name of the community from Northampton Towne to Allentown.

[10] The first public school building began with the purchase of a tract of land for $50 at Walnut and Union Streets, along Front Street on August 30, 1837, was referred to as "Mingo School", and was designed to serve students from Allentown's east-side.

That year, R. W. McAlpine took a group of 14 older students to the Garber-Horne Building, which had been the home of the North American Homeopathic School of Healing Arts at South Penn Street, near the present Allentown School District Administration Building.

Jefferson Elementary began as a one-room brick schoolhouse built by the Salisbury Township School District in 1858 on the north side of Auburn Street.

The establishment of the 16th Ward along Susquehanna Street in what was called Aineyville in 1920 led to the district taking over Roosevelt Elementary which was built in 1910 by Salisbury.

[9] In 1922, the 17th Ward was created and the western boundary of the city was expanded to what is now Cedar Crest Boulevard from 17th Street.

1n 1929, Jack Coffield Stadium for interscholastic football was opened directly behind the main building of Allentown High School.

[15] In 1930. the Annex, the Little Palestra for the basketball team, and the famous tunnel were added to Allentown High School, which provided an indoor connection with the main building.

The 19th Ward acquired the land southwest of Lehigh Street in 1949, including Mountainville, leading to the construction of a fourth junior high school, South Mountain, in 1951, and the Hiram Dodd Elementary School in 1956.

The land was purchased for a new junior high school to accommodate students east of the Lehigh River.

[9][16] On May 21, 1956, ground was broken for the new Louis E. Dieruff High School named in honor of the educator and administrator who had given 44 years of service to the district.

In December 1967, Central suffered a massive fire and the oldest part of the building, built in 1893 as Allentown High School, was completely gutted.

[16] In 1973, the William Allen High School physical education facility was opened on the site of the former Coffied football Field, replacing the Little Plaestra gym and swimming pool.

Harrison-Morton, Raub, South Mountain and Trexler were renamed middle schools for grades six through eight.

[19] The ASD Newcomer Academy, established in 2011, provides classes in Spanish for students from 8th-12th grade who are learning English as a second language.

According to the district website, the school aims to help students develop real-world skills through various elective courses concentrated on different career paths such as medicine and media.