A lot of families searching homes in Herndon assume the high school conversation ends with two names: Herndon High and South Lakes. That is a reasonable starting point, but it misses something important. If you are buying near Floris Road, McNair Elementary, or Lutie Lewis Coates Elementary, there is a strong chance your assigned high school is Westfield — a large, well-regarded school located in Chantilly, about five miles southwest of the Town of Herndon.
Westfield is not the first school that shows up in Herndon conversations, but it serves a meaningful chunk of the Herndon community. Knowing it is in your pyramid ahead of time, rather than discovering it after you are under contract, is the kind of thing that makes a real difference in a home search.
Here is a grounded look at what the school offers and what families should factor into their thinking.
Westfield High School at a Glance
- Formal name: Westfield High School
- Common name: Westfield High or WHS; mascot is the Bulldogs
- District: Fairfax County Public Schools
- Grades: 9–12
- Address: 4700 Stonecroft Blvd, Chantilly, VA 20151
- Principal: Antonio DiBari
- Main phone: 703-488-6300
- Website: westfieldhs.fcps.edu
- Pyramid: Westfield High Pyramid
- Enrollment: approximately 2,746 students (2024–25)
- Student-teacher ratio: 14:1
- Accreditation: Fully Accredited (Virginia Department of Education)
To confirm whether your specific address is in the Westfield pyramid, use the FCPS School Locator. Boundaries in the Herndon-Chantilly corridor can be counterintuitive, and a Herndon mailing address does not tell you which pyramid you are in.
Why Herndon Families End Up at Westfield
Westfield High anchors a pyramid that includes several elementary schools located in Herndon: Floris Elementary, Lutie Lewis Coates Elementary, McNair Elementary, and McNair Upper Elementary. Students from those schools flow into Rachel Carson Middle School and then on to Westfield.
This is a meaningful overlap. Those four Herndon elementary schools represent a real community of families who end up commuting to Chantilly for high school rather than staying in Herndon proper. The commute from that part of Herndon to Westfield runs roughly 10 to 15 minutes via Route 28 or Centreville Road depending on traffic, which is manageable but worth factoring in if after-school activities are a regular part of your family's schedule.
Academic Profile and Rankings
Niche gives Westfield a B+ overall and ranks it #13 among public high schools in Fairfax County. GreatSchools rates it 6 out of 10 and has previously awarded it a College Success Award recognizing strong postsecondary preparation. U.S. News and World Report ranks Westfield #73 in Virginia, a comfortable top-quarter position statewide for a large, diverse comprehensive school.
From the Virginia School Quality Profile, math pass rates run at 79% and reading at 88%, both above state averages. The average SAT score is approximately 1,280 and average ACT is 29. For postsecondary outcomes, 78.6% of graduating students enrolled in a postsecondary program within 16 months of graduation.
AP and Advanced Coursework
Westfield offers more than 55 AP and dual-enrollment courses, a substantial catalog by any standard. According to VDOE data, roughly 34% of students are enrolled in at least one AP course. The school's published course catalog lists 30 AP courses and 23 dual-credit courses, giving students real flexibility to build a rigorous schedule. There is no IB program at Westfield. Students who want IB would need to look at South Lakes High School in Reston.
AVID and Student Support Programs
Westfield runs the AVID program (Advancement Via Individual Determination), designed to support students who are capable of college-prep coursework but benefit from additional structure, coaching, and study skills development. AVID is a daily class with a strong focus on college readiness and scholarship preparation.
The school also runs several community-focused programs that reflect the diverse population it serves. HACE (Hispanic Achievement and Community Engagement) and GRACE are student-support initiatives aimed at building belonging and academic confidence for students who may feel underrepresented in a large school environment. YMLG (Young Men's Leadership Group) is a structured program focused on leadership development and accountability. These programs are not academic courses, but they contribute to the culture of the school and can be meaningful for students who benefit from a smaller community within a larger institution.
The Finish Strong program gives seniors the option to complete their required coursework and transition into a structured experience for the final weeks of the school year, which can include internships, community projects, or academic enrichment. It functions as a bridge between high school and whatever comes next.
The Writing Center
Westfield has a dedicated Writing Center, a resource that is easy to overlook but genuinely useful for students across all grade levels and ability ranges. It provides peer and teacher support for writing assignments across all subjects, not just English. For students who struggle with writing-heavy coursework, or for those who want to push their work further, a functioning writing center is a real advantage in a school this size.
Purple Star School
Westfield holds the Purple Star School designation from the Virginia Department of Education, recognizing the school's commitment to supporting military-connected students and families. The Chantilly corridor sees a steady flow of military and government-contractor families, and the Purple Star designation signals that the school has put systems in place to help those families transition smoothly. Even for non-military families, it reflects a school culture that is deliberate about welcoming new students.
Athletics
Westfield fields teams in a full range of varsity sports as the Bulldogs: baseball, basketball, cheerleading, crew, cross country, dance, field hockey, football, golf, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball, and wrestling. The crew program has a strong following, which is common among FCPS schools in this part of the county given access to the Occoquan Reservoir. The booster community is well-organized and the athletics program competes at a high level within the Northern Region.
Clubs and Activities
Westfield advertises more than 100 clubs and activities, covering academic teams, cultural organizations, service clubs, special interest groups, and student government. The school encourages students to start new clubs if they cannot find one that fits their interests. For a school drawing from a wide geographic and cultural area, the depth of the clubs program matters: it gives students a way to find their community within a building of nearly 2,800 people.
What the Chantilly Location Means
Westfield sits on Stonecroft Boulevard in Chantilly, and that distinction matters for day-to-day logistics. Students commuting from the Floris, McNair, or Coates area of Herndon are heading west and south rather than staying in town. The commute is manageable, but it means the social geography of the school community will feel more Chantilly-centric than Herndon-centric. Families who value being embedded in the local school community as a neighborhood institution will feel that difference.
At the same time, Westfield's location near the Route 28 corridor and the Dulles Access Road makes it reasonably accessible from much of western Herndon. Families who already commute toward Tysons, Reston Town Center, or down the Dulles Toll Road may find the school more convenient than it looks on a map.
Contact Information
- Address: 4700 Stonecroft Blvd, Chantilly, VA 20151
- Phone: 703-488-6300
- Website: westfieldhs.fcps.edu
- Principal: Antonio DiBari
- FCPS School Locator: fcps.edu boundary locator
The Bottom Line
Westfield High School is a large, fully accredited comprehensive school with a broad academic offering, a strong slate of AP and dual-enrollment courses, and a genuine commitment to supporting students across a wide range of backgrounds and needs. For Herndon families in the Floris, McNair, and Coates communities, it is the default high school assignment, and it is a school worth understanding rather than just accepting by default.
The ratings are solid, the programs are real and functioning, and the school culture has enough structure and variety to serve most students well. Families whose students thrive in large environments with lots of options will find plenty to work with. Those who want a smaller, more intimate setting may find the scale requires some intentionality about getting involved.
If you are buying in Herndon and want to know exactly whether your address feeds to Westfield, Herndon High, or another pyramid entirely, Kathy and I can walk through it with you. It is one of the more common questions we field from buyers coming into this part of the county.
