About Us

Meet The Headmaster

Nancy Schuler is a woman with blonde hair
Nancy Schuler, Head of School

I am delighted that you are considering Westminster School for your child. Thank you for taking the time to learn about our unique program and classical approach.

The first time I stepped through the doors of Westminster School, I was 11 years old and just starting as a new 6th -grade student. Having come from a Fairfax County public school, I did not know what to expect from this unfamiliar place. Little did I know then the impact the decision my parents made to bring me to Westminster would have on my life. Very quickly, I began to see the difference between my previous school and the one I had just joined. Never had I learned how to study, take notes, develop a passion for classic literature, and write at such a high level. In addition, I was exposed to a wide array of experiences in the arts and athletics, and taken on field trips to the opera, museums, outward-bound excursions, camping trips, and Williamsburg. Coming to Westminster changed the course of my life and set me on a path much richer and more well-rounded than I would have had otherwise. I am pleased to say that all of those eye-opening, world-changing experiences I had are still available to our students today, along with many more enhancements that have been made since my days as a student. Westminster is a place that inspires wonder, engenders kindness, instills a work ethic, and empowers a young mind and heart to explore the possibilities that life has to offer.

Few investments have greater potential than your child’s education. His/her depth of knowledge and understanding of the world, quality of academic skills, attitude toward life’s opportunities and setbacks, good character, and self- confidence will all be critically shaped by your child’s educational experience, especially during the formative elementary and middle-school years. At Westminster School, we understand how to engage and motivate students based on their natural curiosity and enjoyment during each phase of their development. Our students are taught how to think critically and creatively, how to harness their energies and direct them to purpose, and how to respect themselves and others. In short, we give them the tools they need to succeed in school and in life. For 60 years, we have helped parents raise knowledgeable, creative, kind, and confident children by applying the classical method to their educational lives and beyond.

Learning, striving, and having fun are not mutually exclusive, and these life- enhancing experiences are interwoven throughout our students’ days. With small class sizes and a dedicated staff, we ensure that each student receives the loving attention and high expectations parents want for their child, and which are necessary if he/she is to become the best possible version of him/herself. Nothing makes us prouder than to see a student realize his/her potential and thrive not only within our school community, but in the communities beyond Westminster School walls. Thank you for your interest in our school. I look forward to meeting and welcoming you to our campus soon!

With Warm Regard,

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Westminster School Heads of School

(1962-Present)

Nancy Schuler is the head of school

Mrs. Schuler, 2021 - Present

After 30 years of service to Westminster School, Mrs. Nancy Schuler was named Head of School by the Board of Trustees and assumed that position on August 1, 2021. She is the third Head of School since Westminster’s founding in 1962. Mrs. Schuler holds a BS in Elementary Education with a concentration in Business Administration and a MEd in Independent School Leadership.

In addition to being a graduate herself (Class of 1979) and the mother of three graduates (2010, 2010, 2014), Mrs. Schuler has served the school in many capacities, including 3rd/4th Grade History Teacher, Team Leader, Geography Department Chair, History Chair, and Director of Admissions. In the years following, she took on increasing administrative responsibilities, including heading up the school’s COVID response and safe return to school.

Since becoming Head of School, Mrs. Schuler has made many enhancements and started new initiatives at Westminster. She has prioritized improvements to the facility, most notably by securing funds and completing the grand addition of the Griffin Field and Playground Plaza. Additionally, she oversaw the installation of a much-needed upgraded HVAC system in the summer of 2025 and the replacement of the majority of the school’s roof in 2021.

Mrs. Schuler’s program initiatives include the addition of Spanish as a language choice (previously only French and Latin were offered), the installation of a designated MakerSpace including STEAM materials and equipment, as well as an expansion of the STEAM program and the hiring of a full-time STEAM teacher. In addition, Mrs. Schuler added a formalized Social/Emotional Learning program for grades 4-8. Investments also have been made in new athletic equipment and uniforms, orchestra and music equipment, library upgrades, and an expansion of the Student Resource Center.

Mr. Ellis Glover - Second Head at Westminster School

Mr. Glover, 1976 - 2021

Westminster’s philosophy expanded under the leadership of Ellis Glover, the school’s second Head, who was personally and professionally mentored by the school’s founder. Mr. Glover’s personal upbringing manifested itself in an overall emphasis on excellence, showing pride in work and attention to matters of presentation, whether personal or in the physical plant. His education in the humanities, with an emphasis on classical learning, dovetailed with the program established by Mrs. Goll, but he brought additional interests and energy to the school. Mr. Glover was instrumental in developing the P.E. and athletic programs, including helping to found the Capital Athletic Conference and insisting on league parity for girls. His work with the students in drama and other hands-on teaching, along with his personal evolution, persuaded him of the central role of the arts in the development of the individual. While exposure to the arts had always been included in the Westminster program, the powerful effect of participation in the arts on the children’s confidence, poise, and sense of possibility gradually emerged as a desirable and defining characteristic of the Westminster program.

This development of both athletics and arts as important components of a Westminster education, in addition to the strong academic program, gave rise to the ideal of a Westminster graduate as a “Renaissance” person, knowledgeable, interested, and actively engaged in developing him/herself in many directions. From this arose a school motto: “Celebrate strength, strengthen weakness.” In other words, rather than focus on one outstanding ability a child may evidence, the Westminster program provides opportunities to “shine” in areas of strength, while nurturing and challenging the student in many areas. The goal of balancing the energies and development of mind, body, and spirit emerged in the school philosophy. In 2021, after 45 years of service to Westminster School, Mr. Glover retired.

Jane Goll is a woman wearing a blue blouse

Mrs. Goll, Founder, 1962 - 1976

Jane Goll, who conceived and established Westminster School, was herself the product of a remarkable upbringing. Her intellect, discipline, and dedication to learning were nurtured and strengthened by the richness and rigor of a traditional, classical education in the New York City public schools, as well as the close attention and high expectations of her father. Her great sympathy for humanity and her passion for living were inspired by literature and a wide array of cultural and life experiences provided first by her parents and then through her own choices. Mrs. Goll grew up aspiring to be a teacher. She married and accompanied her husband to various governmental posts in Europe, where she experienced firsthand the educational systems practiced there. When Mrs. Goll returned to America, teaching in both public and private institutions, she felt that the schools neither challenged nor enriched the students as much as they deserved, so she decided to establish her own school.

In 1962, Mrs. Goll rented facilities at St. Albans Episcopal Church in Annandale, VA, and opened a private kindergarten class. The children in her care made such remarkable progress that their parents pleaded with Mrs. Goll to expand the program into first grade. Year by year, the program grew, and soon Mrs. Goll needed to give her school a name. Inspired by the great English school of the same name, Mrs. Goll chose to call the school Westminster.

When Westminster School’s enrollment reached the capacity of the rented facilities, the parents urged Mrs. Goll to build her own school, and they helped raise funds for purchase of property at 3819 Gallows Road. The current school facilities were built in six construction phases from 1970 to 2003. (Westminster School is now planning further expansion in the form of a state-of-the-art, turf athletic field addition and a building addition to house new upper-school classrooms and expanding art, science, and technology programs.)

Into her vision of a superior elementary education, Mrs. Goll wove what she saw as the English dedication to classical learning; the high expectations and attention to detail emphasized in German schools; the passion for philosophical inquiry, emphasis on the arts, and the joie de vivre of the French; and the optimism, warmth, and friendliness characteristic of American schools. From these hybrid elements, fed by the passion and dedication of Mrs. Goll, her protégé, Mr. Glover (Head of School, 1992 – 2021), and other supporters, grew the structure of Westminster, its program, policies, procedures, traditions, and values. In establishing the Western Civilization survey and classical studies as the touchstone of the curriculum, Mrs. Goll was particularly influenced by the writings of Gilbert Hyatt and Jacques Barzun. From Hyatt, she also borrowed the correlation of the sequence of the history curriculum with the age and developmental stage of the students.

Mrs. Goll’s intense vitality, charm, and strength of character earned her much love and respect, and her death on September 5, 1992, came as a sorrowful shock to the Westminster community. At her memorial service, more than 300 staff members, students, parents, alumni, and friends joined family members in celebrating her dauntless spirit and significant accomplishments.

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