In the 1820s in Plain Township, schooling had been taught in log cabins. In 1821, a frame school building was built on Central College; the teacher was Jacob Smith. In 1874, a new brick school was built in the Village. In 1955 the Ohio General Assembly eliminated the requirement that cities and school districts have common borders. From the 50s through the 70s the City of Columbus aggressively annexed land, causing concern for local school districts. In 1980 the suburban school districts together persuaded the Ohio General Assembly to place a two-year moratorium on all big-city school district transfers. Concerned legislators asked school officials to work out a solution to the growing "turf war" over the changing school district boundaries. In 1982, when little progress was made toward arriving at an agreeable solution, the General Assembly extended the moratorium for another two years, but stated they would not renew it again in 1986. Once again, the districts were directed to develop permanent boundary and annexation agreements. State Representative Michael Stinziano and other community and education leaders convened a series of negotiations with the Franklin County school district officials in 1986. These officials eventually reached an agreement, the “Joint Agreement Among and Between the Boards of Education of Certain School Districts in Franklin County, Ohio”, nicknamed “Win-Win”. The agreement established mechanisms to predict school district boundaries among the twelve member districts. It set procedures for Columbus to acquire new territory in the future, and established revenue sharing between Columbus City Schools and the suburban districts. The success of the agreement's adoption resulted in the Ohio General Assembly’s approval, and Governor Celeste’s signing of the agreement. The current New Albany High School was built in 1996. The school was expanded in 2002 to include an additional academic wing with offices, a new high school football stadium and additional locker rooms. Those improvements were completed in 2004.
Part of New Albany's building project in 1996 was the completion of a natatorium. This facility is open to the community, as well as the students. It also hosts home meets for the New Albany Swimming and Diving team. Built in 2008, The McCoy Center for the Arts is a multi-use art center with and includes a 786-seat auditorium with balcony seating, partial fly loft, a large lobby, rehearsal studio, dance studio, scene shop and art classrooms. The McCoy Company and New Albany-Plain Local School District both share the building. In 2013, an artificial turf football field was built inside the old football stadium. The football stadium was renamed "Veterans Field" in honor of all the alumni who served in the armed forces. The football field was an addition that was completely funded by donations from the public. In 2019, the city of New Albany opened "Rose Run Park", complete with a bridge connecting the campus to the New Albany library and market street stores, bike trails, and more. In 2019, the New Albany Plain Local Schools district leased land to the City of New Albany, to begin construction on an amphitheater between New Albany Middle School, and the Jeanne B. McCoy Center for the Arts.
Athletics
Teams
Fall: Cheerleading, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Soccer, Tennis Volleyball, Field Hockey
