History

Founded in 1965, Lake Anne Nursery Kindergarten has the acclaimed position to be recognized as Reston’s first preschool under the “New Town Plan” created by Reston’s founder Robert E. Simon. With only five small preschool pioneers and one teacher on staff at its inception, LANK quickly became a cornerstone of the Lake Anne Village Center and the larger Reston community.

During this time, the idea of sending children to preschool was on the leading edge of education philosophy as most children did not attend school prior to kindergarten. As the idea began to catch on, LANK outgrew its space at Lake Anne Village Center and, in 1972, moved to its current location on 2 ½ beautiful acres of woods on North Shore Drive. This move was funded by the community and was designed specifically to meet the educational needs of young children. The building was awarded the prestigious AIA Award for Architecture.

In 2000, another wing of the building was added in order to provide a spacious Junior Preschool suite as well as a multi-purpose room and teachers' conference room. In the years to follow, many renovations have been made to update the building and grounds to accommodate the over 20 staff members and 200 students that occupy it during the school year.

As we celebrate over 45 years of educating children, we are grateful for the generous support of so many families and their vital role in LANK's achievements. We are dedicated to our mission and look forward to serving the Northern Virginia community now and in the future.