Ashburn Elementary isn’t phasing out the chalkboard, but it’s certainly trying to embrace the next generation of technology.

The school is home to seven Smart Boards, which are interactive white boards that replace the traditional chalkboard. The school’s technology resource teacher also spends time with teachers to integrate technology into the classroom.

Ashburn Elementary principal Barbara Holley said the school is proud of its diversity. During its annual Taste of the World festival, parents bring in ethnic food to celebrate their heritage.

Each classroom has displays representing the country of origin of its students, while the school is adorned with flags representing different nations.

Holley hosts coffee chats with parents of her students. She said parents are heavily involved in the classroom, with some volunteering in the classroom and others helping with PTO.

“We are very proud of our parent participation here,” she said. “We have lots of parent participation in our school.”

Each Thursday, parents know that Ashburn Elementary students will bring home a folder that contains their work and school information. Parents also receive a monthly newsletter, while teachers send home weekly or monthly newsletters.

Ashburn Elementary also has a strong ESL program, Holley said. Students are bused in from surrounding schools to participate, while kindergarten students spend their mornings in ESL class and their afternoons in a traditional classroom.

According to the school’s improvement plan in 2005-06, it wants to decrease the discrepancy in scores of lower-income and minority students. For example, 78 percent of Hispanic students and 75 percent of black students passed the writing portion of the SOL test, compared to 98 percent of white students.

About 67 percent of lower-income students passed the math SOL test – a number that was 29 percent higher for non-disadvantaged students, the improvement plan states. The school hopes to decrease that discrepancy to 15 percentage points.

In the future, Holley said technology will continue to be an integral part of the school curriculum. She said the school is placing a strong emphasis on technological success.

“We need to make sure we’re meeting the needs of these students and giving them the resources they need to be successful,” Holley said.