By AUBREY HAWKE
Waltham Times Contributing Writer
The School Committee has appointed a temporary superintendent for the district while Superintendent Marisa Mendonsa goes on medical leave.
“I will be receiving treatment for breast cancer, and I will be going out on medical leave starting next Wednesday, Jan. 15, for surgery,” Mendonsa told the committee at its Wednesday night meeting.
Mendonsa said she expects she will need three to four weeks of leave for surgery and recovery, and she requested sick days to cover that time period. However, because she started in her position this summer, she only had two weeks of accumulated sick days.
The committee unanimously approved her request.
After a brief discussion on who in the superintendent’s office has the necessary certifications and availability to take on the position in Mendonsa’s absence, committee members voted to appoint human resources administrator Kate Peretz.
Peretz, who was at the meeting, joined the district’s administrative team last summer.
Mendonsa plans to return to work in February. In the meantime, Mayor Jeannette McCarthy assured her that the district will be in good hands.
“We don’t want you to worry about one thing. We want you to come back healthy,” McCarthy told Mendonsa.
“This is the most challenging thing, hopefully, I will face in my life. And I can’t think of another place I would rather be than the City of Waltham. Thank you to the community for your support, and my team, and our students and staff. Thank you very much,” said Mendonsa.
Mendonsa had alerted the school community about her diagnosis in a Dec. 13 email.