Washington County School Board adopts $123.1 million budget for 2025–26; approves teleconference participation and moves to closed session

The Washington County School Board voted to adopt the final 2025–26 school budget totaling $123,100,823 and approved two procedural motions during the June meeting.

Board members were presented with updated enrollment counts and revenue figures before the vote. Dr. Perrigan said the division closed the year with a final enrollment of 6,438 students, above earlier estimates; he said that higher enrollment raised state revenue to about $66.3 million (roughly $1.9 million above the earlier budgeted estimate). The presentation also said roughly 500 out-of-division students used the district’s virtual offerings; that participation increased state revenue to about $70.3 million and yielded an additional roughly $220,000 to the division.

The board approved the budget by fund with the amounts shown in the motion: fund 312 — $107,539,657; fund 314 — $4,803,238; fund 315 — $3,538,642; fund 316 — $2,122,780; fund 317 — $5,096,506; total $123,100,823. A board member moved the final adoption and another seconded; the board chair called for the vote and members approved the budget. Jenny Nichols stated “I vote yes” during the roll call.

Other fiscal details presented to the board included a final bill listing of about $471,000 and additional June expenditures (including bonuses) that together were identified as larger end-of-year cash outlays. The district reported a $566,000 dual-enrollment invoice to Virginia Highlands among payments processed. The presenter said the division anticipates a final zero balance in fund 312 after encumbrances and noted about $1.2 million in encumbrances (including buses and outstanding band equipment and uniforms). He said the district still had about $938,000 remaining from the governor’s funding for high-intensity tutoring.

The board also approved a motion to allow Jenny Nichols and Crystal Rasnick to participate in the meeting by teleconference; that motion passed. Later in the meeting the board voted to convene a closed session under the statutory authority cited for personnel and legal consultation (Code of Virginia §2.2-3711(a)); the motion listed personnel items to be discussed and the vote to convene the closed session carried.

During general remarks board members highlighted capital projects completed or underway — auditorium renovations at John S. Battle and Holston, tennis-court work in partnership with the Town of Abingdon, paving projects, and purchase/encumbrance of buses. The superintendent noted plans to acquire a utility “mule” for the Career and Technical Center and said one new activity bus recently purchased had been used to transport students to Virginia Tech and that students involved in a recent incident were “all fine.”