METHUEN — Embattled school Superintendent Brandi Kwong announced Friday that she will be on medical leave through the rest of the school year, effectively and suddenly ending her seven-year tenure as the head of the 6,500-student district.
Current Assistant Superintendent of Teacher and Learning Lisa Golobski Twomey will assume the role of acting superintendent effective Monday, according to a brief statement sent to the school community by Mayor D.J. Beauregard and School Committee Vice Chair Laurie Keegan Friday afternoon.
“This morning, Dr. Brandi Kwong informed School Committee leadership that she will be taking a medical leave of absence through the end of the current school year,” the statement said. “Effective December 15, 2025, Dr. Lisa Golobski Twomey will assume the role of Acting Superintendent. The School Committee will determine the district’s next steps.”
Kwong, who had been planning to resign at the end of this school year in late June or early July 2026, has served as superintendent for the past seven years but had worked in the district for the prior two decades.
According to the statement from officials, Kwong, who makes approximately $220,000 a year, informed committee leadership of her intention to take medical leave Friday morning. According to her contract, she gets 10 sick days a year and is allowed to accumulate up to 20 days a year in sick leave. I
Before taking on the superintendent’s role, Kwong served as a principal in the district for 10 years. She then as assistant superintendent for six years. She holds a doctorate in education from UMass-Lowell.
She had been absent from the past few committee meetings.
Keegan said there was no further comment at this time.
Kwong was recently a finalist for the superintendent’s job in Wilmington, telling the School Committee there during a public interview on Nov. 19 that it was “time for me to experience other communities.”
The Wilmington committee subsequently voted to hire Nashua, New Hampshire Superintendent Matthew Poska instead.
Meanwhile, earlier this week the City Council took a vote of no-confidence in both Kwong and the full School Committee. Before taking a 5-2 vote at their Monday night meeting, councilors heard from community members that the district was failing, had a bloated budget and was presided over by toxic and inept leadership. Several parents and other community members defended Kwong at the meeting.
Councilor Jana Zanni Pesce, a former school committee member, said she had “no confidence in the (school) system the way it is now. It’s not personal.”
Further, a recent survey of the district highlighted criticism of her administration based on a series of surveys of staff members.