Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center board approves FY26 budget, authorizes armed campus security and extends executive director contract

The Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center Board of Trustees on June 12 approved the center’s proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, passed a resolution authorizing campus security personnel meeting state requirements to carry firearms while on duty, appointed Olivia Bailey to fill a vacant secretary seat, and extended Executive Director David Matlock’s employment agreement through Jan. 31, 2027.

Board members voted by voice on each item. The budget vote followed questions about the center’s contingency level and accounting for apprenticeship costs; trustees approved the proposed FY26 budget after a motion and second and a voice vote in which members said “aye.” David Matlock, executive director, told the board the center’s general fund revenue came in slightly above the approved figure and that non-general fund program revenue produced about $1,139,000 in the year reported. Matlock said personnel costs came in under the approved figure and that a maintenance-reserve account remains available for future work. Matlock said the…