Tom Tolen / news@whmi.com

It’s the end of one era, coupled with the beginning of a new one. Meeting Monday in regular session, the Board of Education approved the hiring of Joey Swinkey as the new Brighton High School band instructor and director to replace Gabrielle Hoffman.

Hoffman, who has led the Brighton High School bands since 2012 and whose charges have amassed numerous accolades and awards for excellence, recently announced she would be retiring from her position but still working in the district until the end of the coming semester.

Considering Brighton's outstanding reputation for its bands, finding a replacement for Hoffman was a difficult task. But the Board of Education feels that in Joey Swinkey it has found the person who can fill her shoes admirably and who will hit the ground running.

Board Secretary Angela Krebs complimented administration for the way in which the selection process was handled. Krebs said, “That was a big position with a lot of concern, (and) they did such a nice, thorough job. Each candidate was able to conduct with a class of around 40 students and they got feedback from the students…They also included parents, teachers, administrators and other performance arts faculty,” Krebs said.

Swinkey has been employed in the Monroe Public Schools for the past six yers, and is currently the high school band director and band instructor. He attended Michigan State University, where he was a member of the MSU Marching Band, and is currently working on his master’s degree from the University of Michigan.

Regarding the selection of Swinkey over the other candidates, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Jacob Anastasoff told the board, “It was very, very much a unanimous choice.” He said Swinkey will start his new job in about two weeks.

Meanwhile, Anastasoff says although Hoffman will be continuing with the Brighton Area Schools for one more semester as a music consultant, as he put it, "The details are still being finalized.”