The American School of Durango was the first bilingual school in the state of Durango. It was founded by Mrs. Agnes McClain de Howard. She founded the school initially to address a personal need to have a school for her kids in which they could continue their education in English. Local businesspersons and parents searching for a better option for the education of their children helped Mrs. Howard make her dream come true.

Mrs. Howard contacted Lyndon B. Johnson who was a friend of hers and an important member of the United States Congress. She requested his help in order to obtain the official accreditation in the United States by the American School Offices of the Department of the Education Association of Texas. Some time later, the application was approved.

In September 1954, the American School of Durango was officially founded with a student body of 100 students from Kindergarten to 9th grade. The State Department of the United States granted financial aid to the school until the mid-1990s when apparently reductions in the overall budget forced the State Department to no longer support schools that did not have a significant U.S. student population.

The first location of the American School of Durango was at the corner of the streets of Hidalgo and Negrete. In 1961, the current facility was bought. Several years later, the American School of Durango began training Bilingual Executive Secretaries, a program that was very popular. The students that graduated from this program were able to obtain jobs in banks and other businesses as bilingual secretaries and bookkeepers.

The total number of students continued to grow and the facilities were no longer sufficient. The high school was reopened and a separate facility was rented for these students. The Bilingual Executive Secretary Program was also relocated. Twenty-eight classes graduated as bilingual secretaries before it was closed due to financial reasons.

The high school was founded in 1977 with the purpose of giving the opportunity to the middle school students to continue with a bilingual education. The first class graduated in 1980, but that same year the program was suspended for 6 years until 1986 when accommodations were made to the main building in order for use by the high school. For many years, the student population was small, with 10 students per class. Currently the population has grown up to 20 students per class. In 2001, the high school students moved to a new facility.

Since its beginnings, the school has been accredited by the Secretary of Public Education of the State of Durango and by the Universidad Juarez del Estado de Durango. In 1998, the middle and high schools became fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and the National Autonomous University of México (UNAM). This dual accreditation greatly benefits ASD graduates in their choices of the highest quality international universities.

High school revalidation from UNAM is done by grade every school year and a report is submitted to SACS on the ASD academic progress and operational performance.