Excelsior Software was founded in Texas in 1986 as a partnership, and incorporated the next year. The company remains privately owned by its founders who initially created one of the first grading software programs called Excelsior Grade.

Today Excelsior is headquartered in Greeley, CO and is home to more than 60 employees. During the years, Excelsior's many technical innovations have included take-home use by teachers, network and administrative software integrations, cross platform MAC/DOS data file compatibility, student photos, telephone system integration, student and parent internet access, standards-based grading, and district-level "data mining".