Gray to Remain as Brighton Superintendant

It was announced during Monday’s night school board meeting that Brighton Area Schools Superintendent Greg Gray would remain in Brighton.

The news came a week after Gray announced he was a finalist for the superintendent position for the Portage Public School District. The announcement led to a tense special meeting, called by the school board, where the Brighton community reacted to the possibility of losing a “great leader.”

Brighton School Board President Miles Vieau informed the audience of Gray's decision to stay at the start of the meeting, according to Brighton School Board Trustee Bill Trombley. After the news, Gray received a standing ovation, according to Trombley, and handshakes from himself as well as several other board members.

Positive reactions from community members came quickly after the news spread with several Brighton Patch readers commenting on the Brighton Patch Facebook page.

“Dr. Gray is an amazing asset to the community,” Christina Maria wrote. “We are lucky to have him and I hope he knows just how much parents appreciate the fact that he's staying.”

“The best news I have heard in a long time,” Jackie Kroeger Palmer wrote. “He is such a wonderful person and brings so much to BAS.”

Compared with the meeting that took place the week before where many parents, students and staff publicly stated their concerns and anger over Gray’s possible departure, Trombley said there were no comments from the audience and they “sailed through the meeting in 45 minutes.”

“We’re moving in the right direction,” he said. “We got the stability we need here and there’s a few people on the board who worked really hard and I’m just real happy with the whole situation.”

The 2013-2014 budget was also approved during the meeting, and Trombley says he is excited to be moving forward.