Upper Darby School District serves the residents of Upper Darby Township, Clifton Heights Borough, and Millbourne Borough, each of which collectively represent a residential suburb of about 90,000 residents. Upper Darby School is located in Southeast Delaware County, Pennsylvania and is one of the largest school districts in Pennsylvania, with over 12,300 students and over 1,072 professional staff and 982 support personnel. The district has 14 schools – 1 high school, 2 middle schools, 10 elementary schools, and a Kindergarten Center.

Upper Darby School District covers 8.3 square miles. In this community of neighborhoods, residents reflect a great diversity of socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. There are over 60 birth countries and 70 home languages represented by the students of Upper Darby School District. The township's wide range of housing options include apartment complexes, townhouses, duplexes, and single-family homes. The community may be characterized as essentially middle-income with occupational representation at the semi-skilled, technical, and professional levels. The School District enrolls over 1476 students served in its English Language Learner program, 1200 students in its special education programs, and over 100 high school students attend career and technical programs in two county-level schools.

The District has a budget of over $165 million, with a millage of approximately 33.815 and an average property value assessment of $100,000.

Established on July 4, 1839, Upper Darby School District has a long and distinguished history of providing public education for its residents. The first School Board President was Dr. George Smith. According to A History of Upper Darby (1972), Dr. Smith was a “botanist, an educator, a farmer, a geologist, an historian, a physician, a judge, a scientist, a senator, and a servant of his friends and neighbors.” In 1836, Dr. Smith was Chairman of Pennsylvania’s State Senate Education Committee and drafted the final version of Pennsylvania’s Free Public School Act. The Act, approved on June 13, 1836, overcame years of opposition to the concept of free education for all children, and authorized state funding for local school districts. For more information about Dr. Smith see the Upper Darby Historical Society website.

Upper Darby School District boasts a diverse group of alumni who live across the globe and who proudly represent the spirit of the Royals in demonstrating Excellence, providing Opportunity , and promoting Unity in their chosen professions in their ways to make our world a better place. We want to tell their stories and celebrate their successes through the Alumni Wall of Fame.

Upper Darby School District works closely with the Upper Darby Township, the Upper Darby Township Sellers Memorial Free Public Libraries, the Upper Darby Township Police Department, the Upper Darby Township Fire Department, parent groups, and civic and faith-based entities to enhance the quality of life for all students, families, and residents. In 2010, the District was awarded the “Great Place to Work” Award by the Philadelphia Inquirer.