Skyview (western Fairfax County) High School

Western High School could be name of Fairfax County’s new western high school​

The Fairfax County School Board could opt for a geographical reference, rather than a person, for the newest high school’s name.

On Thursday (Jan. 8), Superintendent Michelle Reid presented Western High School as her final name recommendation for the future school at 2949 Education Drive in the Herndon area.

FCPS sought name suggestions for the new school from the community before Reid identified several finalists on Dec. 4.

Skyview was the top favored name among students, while Western was the top choice for parents and staff. The superintendent’s other name suggestions included Discovery, Sally Ride, Bessie Coleman, Innovation, Kalpana Chawla, Endeavour, Ronald McNair and David Brown.

There was no formal presentation to the school board during Thursday’s late-running meeting, but the school board will have a final vote on the high school’s name on Feb. 12.

The new high school will open in the 2026-2027 school year on an opt-in basis. That means it will enroll up to 500 rising ninth graders and 500 rising 10th graders who seek to enroll from the Centreville, Chantilly, Oakton, South Lakes and Westfield High School pyramids. If student opt-ins exceed capacity, FCPS will use a randomized lottery and prioritize students within the high school’s projected boundaries.

The new school will help alleviate overcrowding in the Centreville, Chantilly, and Westfield Pyramids. The Oakton and South Lakes high school communities are also included, because there are families in these schools that live in the western part of the county.
Expected Capacity: 2,000+ students

The new high school does not currently have all the necessary facilities for a comprehensive athletic program, so VHSL (Virginia High School League) sports and activities, such as football and basketball, will not be available for the 2026-27 school year. As a non-VHSL school in its first year, students at the new high school will be eligible to participate in VHSL sports and activities at their base school. Transportation will be provided from the new high school to base schools for practices and games.

We aim to offer VHSL sports at the new high school starting in Year 2 or Year 3.

WP02alum said:

Someone told me this was an existing private school that Fairfax purchased. Is this accurate?

Click to expand...

King Abdullah Academy (KAA), a private Saudi Arabian international school in Herndon, Virginia, officially closed at the end of the 2024–2025 academic year. In a landmark acquisition, Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) purchased the 40-acre campus for $150 million in August 2025 to convert it into a new public high school, currently referred to as "Western High School"

• Principal: Dave Jagels, who previously served as principal at Westfield and Mountain View high schools.
• Specialized Pathways: In addition to the standard FCPS curriculum, the school will offer unique "future-ready" programs in Aerospace Science, Technology, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Machine Learning.
• Facilities: The 32.7-acre campus includes a 355,000-square-foot building featuring an indoor swimming pool, a 650-seat auditorium, a black box theater, and specialized robotics labs. They will have to build more sports facilities so students are free to play with former high school this year.