The Quakertown school board has accepted its superintendent's resignation
Matthew Friedman formally resigned after going on leave last month. Lisa Hoffman, who filled his role during the recent student ICE walkout, was appointed interim superintendent.
The Quakertown Community School District board accepted the resignation of Superintendent Matthew Friedman at a meeting Tuesday night.
Friedman, a former Ocean City, N.J., superintendent who took over the 4,600-student district in Upper Bucks County in 2023, had been on leave since Feb. 13, a week before a student walkout protesting federal immigration enforcement ended in a confrontation with police.
District officials did not give a reason for the leave.
On Tuesday, the board voted 9-0 to accept Friedman’s resignation, without any discussion.
Lisa Hoffman, the assistant superintendent who filled Friedman’s role during the recent ICE walkout that garnered national attention, was appointed Tuesday as interim superintendent.
Addressing the board before the vote, Ryan Wieand, the president of Quakertown’s teachers union, said that selecting the next superintendent “is not simply about filling a position at this point. It’s about restoring trust.”
Wieand said the superintendent’s job “demands presence, visibility, and leadership that requires showing up, and not just for social media photo ops.”
The district “can’t be led effectively by someone who is absent more often than not,” Wieand said. “Our next superintendent needs to be 100% invested in Quakertown every single day,” and not view the job as “a stepping stone to another destination.”
He called Hoffman the best candidate for the job, praising her loyalty to the district and “true accountability.”
Friedman could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.